Biocatalysis: Synthesis of Chiral Intermediates for Pharmaceuticals

The production of single enantiomers of drug intermediates has become increasingly important in the pharmaceutical industry. Chiral intermediates and fine chemicals are in high demand by both the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries for the preparation of bulk drug substances and agricultural products. The enormous potential of microorganisms and enzymes for the transformation of synthetic chemicals with high chemo-, regio- and enatioselectivities has been demonstrated. In this article, biocatalytic processes are described for the synthesis of chiral intermediates for anti-hypertensive drugs, lipid lowering drugs, anti-cancer agents, antiviral agents, β-3- and β-2-receptor receptor agonists, melatonin receptor agonists, a tryptase inhibitor, retinoic acid γ-specific antagonist, and anti- Alzheimer's drugs. Enzymatic acyloin condensation and carbobenzyloxy group deprotection reactions are also described.