Lipase-catalyzed enantioselective esterification of racemic ibuprofen coupled with pervaporation

Lipase immobilized catalytically active membrane for synthesis of lauryl stearate in a pervaporation membrane reactor

A composite catalytically active membrane immobilized with Candida rugosa lipase has been prepared by immersion phase inversion technique for enzymatic synthesis of lauryl stearate in a pervaporation membrane reactor. SEM images showed that a "sandwich-like" membrane structure with a porous lipase-PVA catalytic layer uniformly coated on a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/polyethersulfone (PES) bilayer was obtained. Optimum conditions for lipase immobilization in the catalytic layer were determined. The membrane was proved to exhibit superior thermal stability, pH stability and reusability than free lipase under similar conditions. In the case of pervaporation coupled synthesis of lauryl stearate, benefited from in-situ water removal by the membrane, a conversion enhancement of approximately 40% was achieved in comparison to the equilibrium conversion obtained in batch reactors. In addition to conversion enhancement, it was also found that excess water removal by the catalytically active membrane appears to improve activity of the lipase immobilized.

Synthesis of triptorelin lactate catalyzed by lipase in organic media

Triptorelin lactate was successfully synthesized by porcine pancreatic lipase (PPL) in organic solvents. The effects of acyl donor, substrate ratio, organic solvent, temperature, and water activity were investigated. Under the optimum conditions, a yield of 30% for its ester could be achieved in the reaction for about 48 h.

Kinetic resolution of alpha-lipoic acid via enzymatic differentiation of a remote stereocenter

Kinetic resolution of alpha-lipoic acid, a case of remote stereocenter discrimination, was accomplished using lipase from Aspergillus oryzae WZ007. Performance of this lipase was investigated for enantioselective esterification of (S)-alpha-lipoic acid, leaving the target product (R)-alpha-lipoic acid in unreacted form. The effects of chain length of alcohol, type of solvent, molar ratio of alcohol:acid, and reaction temperature were studied. The optimum reaction conditions were found to be esterification with n-octanol at 50 degrees C in heptane with an alcohol:acid molar ratio of 5:1. The conversion rate of alpha-lipoic acid was 75.2%, with an enantiomeric excess of 92.5% towards unreacted substrate in a reaction time of 48 h.

Membrane engineering in biotechnology: quo vamus?

Membranes are essential to a range of applications, including the production of potable water, energy generation, tissue repair, pharmaceutical production, food packaging, and the separations needed for the manufacture of chemicals, electronics and a range of other products. Therefore, they are considered to be "dominant technologies" by governments and industry in several prominent countries--for example, USA, Japan and China. When combined with catalysts, membranes are at the basis of life, and membrane-based biomimetism is a key tool to obtain better quality products and environmentally friendly developments for our societies. Biology has a main part in this global landscape because it simultaneously provides the "model" (with natural biological membranes) and represents a considerable field of applications for new artificial membranes (biotreatments, bioconversions and artificial organs). In this article, our objective is to open up this enthralling area and to give our views about the future of membranes in biotechnology.