ESTER AND PEPTIDE-SYNTHESIS BY PROTEASES IN ORGANIC-SOLVENTS

The interest in the synthetic reactions by enzymes in organic solvents is growing rapidly. There are many advantages in employing enzymes in organic solvents, such as the increase in solubility of nonpolar substrates and the shift of thermodynamic equilibria to favor synthesis over hydrolysis. This paper reviews the recent advance in the synthesis of esters and peptides by proteases in hydro-organic reaction systems. Attention is paid to the characteristics of the reactions in hydrophilic and hydrophobic solvents, and also to the changes in the activity and specificity of the proteases as compared to the reactions in aqueous solutions. The effects of immobilization and the chemical modification of the enzymes on the reactions in organic solvents are also described.