The Development of Biocatalysis as a Tool for Drug Discovery

Authors

  • Jenny Schwarz Chair for Bioprocess Engineering, TU Dortmund University, Emil-Figge-Str. 66, D-44227 Dortmund, Germany
  • Katrin Rosenthal Chair for Bioprocess Engineering, TU Dortmund University, Emil-Figge-Str. 66, D-44227 Dortmund, Germany
  • Radka Snajdrova Global Discovery Chemistry, Novartis Pharma AG, Lichtstrasse, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland
  • Matthias Kittelmann Institutes for BioMedical Research, Novartis Pharma AG, Lichtstrasse, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland
  • Stephan Lütz Chair for Bioprocess Engineering, TU Dortmund University, Emil-Figge-Str. 66, D-44227 Dortmund, Germany

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.2533/chimia.2020.368

PMID:

32482213

Keywords:

Biocatalysis, Chiral building blocks, Drug metabolites, Natural product modifications, Pharmacological activity

Abstract

Enzymes are versatile biocatalysts capable of performing selective reactions. The advantages of enzymes in comparison to classical chemistry including chemical catalysts are the generally milder process conditions and avoidance of harmful reactants. Their high selectivity and specificity are especially beneficial for the enzymatic synthesis of new products with potential applications in drug research. Therefore, in the past decades, the utilization of isolated enzymes or whole-cell biocatalysts has spread through a growing number of biotechnological industries. The applications comprise the production of chiral building blocks for the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industry, the enzymatic synthesis of drug metabolites for testing of toxicity, function, biological activity, degradation and the production of biocatalytically modified natural products, which all play a role in drug discovery. Especially Oreste Ghisalba's contributions, which paved the way for the industrial use of enzymes, will be considered in this review.

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Published

2020-05-27

How to Cite

[1]
J. Schwarz, K. Rosenthal, R. Snajdrova, M. Kittelmann, S. Lütz, Chimia 2020, 74, 368, DOI: 10.2533/chimia.2020.368.