Perspectives

Abstract

Biocatalysis is a key emerging field in Industrial Biotechnology towards synthesis of (complex) chemicals for our daily use. The enormous potential of nature's catalysts can be boosted by combining them either with other enzymes, i.e. multi-enzymatic cascades or with chemo-catalysts, i.e. chemo-enzymatic cascades. The early developments in the field of enzymatic cascade reactions have led to a new phase in which multi-catalytic systems can now be specifically designed and modelled in order to allow efficient cascade reactions that may even suppress side reactions. Recent advances in real-time monitoring and control of catalytic systems allow quality assurance for target product specifications in industry. The online concentration data obtained can be implemented in kinetic modelling, providing more insights in the progress of individual compounds within a complex reacting system. To reach technical benchmarks for volumetric productivities-especially for hydrophobic compounds-medium engineering, i.e. the choice of alternative reaction media opens new possibilities. Also, efficient downstream processing can strongly benefit therefrom. The upcoming advances in enzymatic cascade reactions will profit from digitalization, miniaturization, and automatization and will enable design and optimization of multi-catalytic systems in an economically feasible way. Not only science, but also education and training may shift more towards cross-disciplinary curricula that bring together natural and technical sciences to train the new generations for technological developments.