“…In our previous study, a short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase (SDR) from Empedobacter brevis ZJUY-1401 (EbSDR8, GenBank: ALZ42979.1) was discovered to be an excellent dehydrogenase/reductase for R-selective reduction of prochiral aryl ketones to the corresponding alcohols, , and its catalytic efficiency was further improved by G94A/S153L double mutations . However, Mu0 (EbSDR8-G94A/S153L) showed poor activity toward bulky aryl ketones such as o-halogenated acetophenones, propiophenones, aromatic ketoesters, and diaryl ketones that are highly demanded in pharmaceuticals, agricultural chemistry, fragrance, and fine chemical industries. ,,, In this study, the structural basis preventing the catalysis of 2′-bromoacetophenone ( 2a ) by Mu0 is revealed via enzyme–substrate docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations for T-state and F-state so as to identify the engineering targets.…”