Retrospective on microbial transformations of halogenated organics

Prior to the 1960s, knowledge of biological transformations of highly halogenated aliphatic compounds was limited, except in mammalian organisms where enzymatic transformations occurred to rid the body of ingested harmful chemicals.

Pleurotus ostreatus as a Biocatalyst to Obtain Bicyclic Hydroxylactones with Three or Four Methyl Groups

The purpose of the study was to explore microbial transformations in cultures of basidiomycetes Pleurotus ostreatus, two bicyclic unsaturated lactones occurring in the form of two diastereoisomers. Some of these strains were able to transform unsaturated lactones into four known and three new derivatives. The structures of all lactones were established on the basis of spectroscopic data. Both substrates and products caused a complete inhibition of growth of A. alternata and F. linii strains.

Microbial Genes for a Circular and Sustainable Bio-PET Economy

Plastics have become an important environmental concern due to their durability and resistance to degradation. Out of all plastic materials, polyesters such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are amenable to biological degradation due to the action of microbial polyester hydrolases. The hydrolysis products obtained from PET can thereby be used for the synthesis of novel PET as well as become a potential carbon source for microorganisms. In addition, microorganisms and biomass can be used for the synthesis of the constituent monomers of PET from renewable sources. The combination of both biodegradation and biosynthesis would enable a completely circular bio-PET economy beyond the conventional recycling processes. Circular strategies like this could contribute to significantly decreasing the environmental impact of our dependence on this polymer. Here we review the efforts made towards turning PET into a viable feedstock for microbial transformations. We highlight current bottlenecks in degradation of the polymer and metabolism of the monomers, and we showcase fully biological or semisynthetic processes leading to the synthesis of PET from sustainable substrates.

Genes for a Circular and Sustainable Bio-PET Economy

Plastics have become an important environmental concern due to their durability and resistance to degradation. Out of all plastic materials, polyesters such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are amenable to biological degradation due to the action of microbial polyester hydrolases. The hydrolysis products obtained from PET can thereby be used for the synthesis of novel PET as well as becoming a potential carbon source for microorganisms. In addition, microorganisms and biomass can be used for the synthesis of the constituent monomers of PET from renewable sources. The combination of both biodegradation and biosynthesis would enable a completely circular bio-PET economy beyond the conventional recycling processes. Circular strategies like this could contribute to significantly decrease the environmental impact of our dependence on this polymer. Here we review the efforts made towards turning PET into a viable feedstock for microbial transformations. We highlight current bottlenecks in the degradation of the polymer and the metabolism of the monomers and we showcase fully biological or semisynthetic processes leading to the synthesis of PET from sustainable substrates.

Strategies towards the synthesis of anti-tuberculosis drugs

In this report, we reviewed the strategies towards the synthesis of anti-tuberculosis drugs. They include semisynthetic approaches, resolution based strategies, microbial transformations, solid phase synthesis, and asymmetric synthesis.

Biotransformation of a major beer prenylflavonoid – isoxanthohumol

Microbial transformations of isoxanthohumol (1), a beer prenylated flavonoid, by 51 fungi were investigated. Many of the tested fungi cultures were capable of effective transformation of 1. Mucor hiemalis and Fusarium oxysporum converted isoxanthohumol (1) into isoxanthohumol 7-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (3) and (2R)-2″-(2″′-hydroxyisopropyl)-dihydrofurano[2″,3″:7,8]-4″,5-hydroxy-5-methoxyflavanone (4), respectively. No product was obtained in the transformation of 1 by Absidia glauca conducted in a phosphate buffer. In the same medium, Beauveria bassiana converted isoxanthohumol (1) to isoxanthohumol 7-O-β-d-4″′-O-methylglucopyranoside (2).