An Enzyme Cascade Synthesis of Vanillin

Choose Your Own Adventure: A Comprehensive Database of Reactions Catalyzed by Cytochrome P450 BM3 Variants

Cytochrome P450 BM3 monooxygenase is the topic of extensive research as many researchers have evolved this enzyme to generate a variety of products. However, the abundance of information on increasingly diversified variants of P450 BM3 that catalyze a broad array of chemistry is not in a format that enables easy extraction and interpretation. We present a database that categorizes variants by their catalyzed reactions and includes details about substrates to provide reaction context. This database of >1500 P450 BM3 variants is downloadable and machine-readable and includes instructions to maximize ease of gathering information. The database allows rapid identification of commonly reported substitutions, aiding researchers who are unfamiliar with the enzyme in identifying starting points for enzyme engineering. For those actively engaged in engineering P450 BM3, the database, along with this review, provides a powerful and user-friendly platform to understand, predict, and identify the attributes of P450 BM3 variants, encouraging the further engineering of this enzyme.

A comprehensive review of eclectic approaches to the biological synthesis of vanillin and their application towards the food sector

Vanillin, a highly regarded flavor compound, has earned widespread recognition for its natural and aromatic qualities, piquing substantial interest in the scientific community. This comprehensive review delves deeply into the intricate world of vanillin synthesis, encompassing a wide spectrum of methodologies, including enzymatic, microbial, and immobilized systems. This investigation provides a thorough analysis of the precursors of vanillin and also offers a comprehensive overview of its transformation through these diverse processes, making it an invaluable resource for researchers and enthusiasts alike. The elucidation of different substrates such as ferulic acid, eugenol, veratraldehyde, vanillic acid, glucovanillin, and C6-C3 phenylpropanoids adds a layer of depth and insight to the understanding of vanillin synthesis. Moreover, this comprehensive review explores the multifaceted applications of vanillin within the food industry. While commonly known as a flavoring agent, vanillin transcends this role by finding extensive use in food preservation and food packaging. The review meticulously examines the remarkable preservative properties of vanillin, providing a profound understanding of its crucial role in the culinary and food science sectors, thus making it an indispensable reference for professionals and researchers in these domains.

Graphical abstract

Aromatic natural products synthesis from aromatic lignin monomers using Acinetobacter baylyi ADP1

Achieving sustainable chemical synthesis and a circular economy will require process innovation to minimize or recover existing waste streams. Valorization of lignin biomass has the ability to advance this goal. While lignin has proved a recalcitrant feedstock for upgrading, biological approaches can leverage native microbial metabolism to simplify complex and heterogeneous feedstocks to tractable starting points for biochemical upgrading. Recently, we demonstrated that one microbe with lignin relevant metabolism, Acinetobacter baylyi ADP1, is both highly engineerable and capable of undergoing rapid design-build-test-learn cycles, making it an ideal candidate for these applications. Here, we utilize these genetic traits and ADP1's native β-ketoadipate metabolism to convert mock alkali pretreated liquor lignin (APL) to two valuable natural products, vanillin-glucoside and resveratrol. En route, we create strains with up to 22 genetic modifications, including up to 8 heterologously expressed enzymes. Our approach takes advantage of preexisting aromatic species in APL (vanillate, ferulate, and p-coumarate) to create shortened biochemical routes to end products. Together, this work demonstrates ADP1's potential as a platform for upgrading lignin waste streams and highlights the potential for biosynthetic methods to maximize the existing chemical potential of lignin aromatic monomers.

Synthesis of Renewable High-Density Fuel with Vanillin and Cyclopentanone Derived from Hemicellulose

1,3-bis(cyclohexylmethyl)cyclopentane, a renewable high-density fuel, was first produced in a high overall carbon yield (79.5%) with vanillin and cyclopentanone, which can be derived from biomass. The synthetic route used in this work contains two steps. In the first step, 2,5-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzylidene)cyclopentanone was synthesized by aldol condensation of vanillin and cyclopentanone under the catalysis of sulphuric acid. Over the optimized condensation, a high carbon yield (82.6%) of 2,5-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzylidene) cyclopentanone was achieved at 80 ºC. In the second step, 2,5-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzylidene) cyclopentanone was hydrodeoxygenated over the Pd/HY catalyst in cyclohexane as solvent. High carbon yields of 1,3-bis(cyclohexylmethyl)cyclopentane (96.2%) was obtained. The polycycloalkane mixture as obtained has a density of 0.943 g mL^-1 and a freezing point of -35 °C. It can be blended into conventional high-density fuels (e.g., JP-10) for rockets and missile propulsion as a potential application.

Effective Biotransformation of Variety of Guaiacyl Lignin Monomers Into Vanillin by Bacillus pumilus

Biotransformation has gained increasing attention due to its being an eco-friendly way for the production of value-added chemicals. The present study aimed to assess the potential of Bacillus pumilus ZB1 on guaiacyl lignin monomers biotransformation for the production of vanillin. Consequently, isoeugenol, eugenol, and vanillyl alcohol could be transformed into vanillin by B. pumilus ZB1. Based on the structural alteration of masson pine and the increase of total phenol content in the supernatant, B. pumilus ZB1 exhibited potential in lignin depolymerization and valorization using masson pine as the substrate. As the precursors of vanillin, 61.1% of isoeugenol and eugenol in pyrolyzed bio-oil derived from masson pine could be transformed into vanillin by B. pumilus ZB1. Four monooxygenases with high specific activity were identified that were involved in the transformation process. Thus, B. pumilus ZB1 could emerge as a candidate in the biosynthesis of vanillin by using wide guaiacyl precursors as the substrates.

A Promiscuous Bacterial P450: The Unparalleled Diversity of BM3 in Pharmaceutical Metabolism

CYP102A1 (BM3) is a catalytically self-sufficient flavocytochrome fusion protein isolated from Bacillus megaterium, which displays similar metabolic capabilities to many drug-metabolizing human P450 isoforms. BM3's high catalytic efficiency, ease of production and malleable active site makes the enzyme a desirable tool in the production of small molecule metabolites, especially for compounds that exhibit drug-like chemical properties. The engineering of select key residues within the BM3 active site vastly expands the catalytic repertoire, generating variants which can perform a range of modifications. This provides an attractive alternative route to the production of valuable compounds that are often laborious to synthesize via traditional organic means. Extensive studies have been conducted with the aim of engineering BM3 to expand metabolite production towards a comprehensive range of drug-like compounds, with many key examples found both in the literature and in the wider industrial bioproduction setting of desirable oxy-metabolite production by both wild-type BM3 and related variants. This review covers the past and current research on the engineering of BM3 to produce drug metabolites and highlights its crucial role in the future of biosynthetic pharmaceutical production.

Recent advances in (chemo)enzymatic cascades for upgrading bio-based resources

Developing (chemo)enzymatic cascades is very attractive for green synthesis, because they streamline multistep synthetic processes. In this Feature Article, we have summarized the recent advances in in vitro or whole-cell cascade reactions with a focus on the use of renewable bio-based resources as starting materials. This includes the synthesis of rare sugars (such as ketoses, L-ribulose, D-tagatose, myo-inositol or aminosugars) from readily available carbohydrate sources (cellulose, hemi-cellulose, starch), in vitro enzyme pathways to convert glucose to various biochemicals, cascades to convert 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and furfural obtained from lignin or xylose into novel precursors for polymer synthesis, the syntheses of phenolic compounds, cascade syntheses of aliphatic and highly reduced chemicals from plant oils and fatty acids, upgrading of glycerol or ethanol as well as cascades to transform natural L-amino acids into high-value (chiral) compounds. In several examples these processes have demonstrated their efficiency with respect to high space-time yields and low E-factors enabling mature green chemistry processes. Also, the strengths and limitations are discussed and an outlook is provided for improving the existing and developing new cascades.

The beauty of biocatalysis: sustainable synthesis of ingredients in cosmetics

Covering: 2015 up to July 2021The market for cosmetics is consumer driven and the desire for green, sustainable and natural ingredients is increasing. The use of isolated enzymes and whole-cell organisms to synthesise these products is congruent with these values, especially when combined with the use of renewable, recyclable or waste feedstocks. The literature of biocatalysis for the synthesis of ingredients in cosmetics in the past five years is herein reviewed.

Improving 3-methylphenol (m-cresol) production in yeast via in vivo glycosylation or methylation

Heterologous expression of 6-methylsalicylic acid synthase (MSAS) together with 6-MSA decarboxylase enables de novo production of the platform chemical and antiseptic additive 3-methylphenol (3-MP) in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. However, toxicity of 3-MP prevents higher production levels. In this study, we evaluated in vivo detoxification strategies to overcome limitations of 3-MP production. An orcinol-O-methyltransferase from Chinese rose hybrids (OOMT2) was expressed in the 3-MP producing yeast strain to convert 3-MP to 3-methylanisole (3-MA). Together with in situ extraction by dodecane of the highly volatile 3-MA this resulted in up to 211 mg/L 3-MA (1.7 mM) accumulation. Expression of a UDP-glycosyltransferase (UGT72B27) from Vitis vinifera led to the synthesis of up to 533 mg/L 3-MP as glucoside (4.9 mM). Conversion of 3-MP to 3-MA and 3-MP glucoside was not complete. Finally, deletion of phosphoglucose isomerase PGI1 together with methylation or glycosylation and feeding a fructose/glucose mixture to redirect carbon fluxes resulted in strongly increased product titers, with up to 897 mg/L 3-MA/3-MP (9 mM) and 873 mg/L 3-MP/3-MP as glucoside (8.1 mM) compared to less than 313 mg/L (2.9 mM) product titers in the wild type controls. The results show that methylation or glycosylation are promising tools to overcome limitations in further enhancing the biotechnological production of 3-MP.