The comparison between the biocatalyzed synthesis of araA here described and the chemical synthesis of this nucleoside showed that the enzymatic route is superior (less steps, milder conditions and reagents, easier downstream, lower E-factor).

Biocatalysis offers an alternative approach to conventional chemical processes for the production of single-isomer chiral drugs. Lipases are one of the most used enzymes in the synthesis of enantiomerically pure intermediates. The use of this type of enzyme is mainly due to the characteristics of their regio-, chemo- and enantioselectivity in the resolution process of racemates, without the use of cofactors. Moreover, this class of enzymes has generally excellent stability in the presence of organic solvents, facilitating the solubility of the organic substrate to be modified. Further improvements and new applications have been achieved in the syntheses of biologically active compounds catalyzed by lipases. This review critically reports and discusses examples from recent literature (2007 to mid-2015), concerning the synthesis of enantiomerically pure active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and their intermediates in which the key step involves the action of a lipase.

The use of nucleoside phosphorylases (NPs; EC 2.4.2.n) represents a convenient alternative to the chemical route for the synthesis of natural and modified nucleosides. We purified four recombinantly expressed nucleoside phosphorylases from the bacterial pathogens Citrobacter koseri, Clostridium perfringens, and Streptococcus pyogenes (CkPNPI, CkPNPII, CpUP, SpUP) and their substrate specificity was investigated towards either natural pyrimidine or purine nucleosides and some analogues, namely, arabinosyladenine (araA) and 2′,3′‐dideoxyinosine (ddI). A 2–3 % activity towards these latter compounds (compared to the natural substrates) was observed. Enzyme activities were compared to the specificities obtained for the enzymes pyrimidine nucleoside phosphorylase from Bacillus subtilis (BsPyNP) and purine nucleoside phosphorylase from Aeromonas hydrophila (AhPNPII) previously reported by some of the authors. The enzymes displaying the suitable specificity for the synthesis of araA and ddI were immobilized on aldehyde–agarose. The immobilized preparations were highly stable at alkaline pH and in the presence of methanol or acetonitrile as cosolvent. They were used in the synthesis of araA and ddI by a one‐pot, bienzymatic transglycosylation achieving 74 and 44 % conversion, respectively.

A purine nucleoside phosphorylase from Aeromonas hydrophyla (AhPNP) was covalently immobilized in a pre‐packed stainless steel column containing aminopropylsilica particles via Schiff base chemistry upon glutaraldehyde activation. The resulting AhPNP‐IMER (Immobilized Enzyme Reactor, immobilization yield ≈50%) was coupled on‐line through a 6‐way switching valve to an HPLC apparatus containing an analytical or a semi‐preparative chromatographic column. The synthesis of five 6‐modified purine ribonucleosides was carried out by continuously pumping the reaction mixture through the AhPNP‐IMER until the highest conversion was reached, and then directing the reaction mixture to chromatographic separation. The conditions of the AhPNP‐catalyzed transglycosylations (2:1 ratio sugar donor:base acceptor; 10 mM phosphate buffer; pH 7.5; temperature 37 °C, flow rate 0.5 mL min−1) were optimized by a fractional factorial experimental design. Coupling the bioconversion step with the product purification in such an integrated platform resulted in a fast and efficient synthetic process (yield=52–89%; <10 mg) where sample handling was minimized. To date, AhPNP‐IMER has retained completely its activity upon 50 reactions in 10 months.magnified image