Deracemization by simultaneous bio-oxidative kinetic resolution and stereoinversion

Abstract

Deracemization, that is, the transformation of a racemate into a single product enantiomer with theoretically 100-% conversion and 100-% ee, is an appealing but also challenging option for asymmetric synthesis. Herein a novel chemo-enzymatic deracemization concept by a cascade is described: the pathway involves two enantioselective oxidation steps and one non-stereoselective reduction step, enabling stereoinversion and a simultaneous kinetic resolution. The concept was exemplified for the transformation of rac-benzylisoquinolines to optically pure (S)-berbines. The racemic substrates were transformed to optically pure products (ee>97-%) with up to 98-% conversion and up to 88-% yield of isolated product. From two make one: Chemo-enzymatic stereoinversion and enzymatic kinetic resolution have been combined in a simultaneous cascade process to transform racemic substrates (A, ent-A) into optically pure product P. The concept was exemplified for benzylisoquinolines rac-1 yielding optically pure berbines (S)-2. The reaction system comprised a monoamine oxidase (MAO-N), morpholine-borane, and the berberine bridge enzyme (BBE). © 2014 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.