A Cyanide-free Biocatalytic Process for Synthesis of Complementary Enantiomers of 4-Chloro-3-hydroxybutanenitrile From Allyl Chloride

A biocatalyst used for selective ring scission of (+/-)-5-(chloromethyl)-4, 5-dihydroisoxazole to synthesize chiral (R)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutanenitrile (90 % ee, 39 % isolated yield) and (S)-5-(chloromethyl)-4, 5-dihydroisoxazole (99 % ee, 39 % isolated yield) was developed by site-saturated mutagenesis on aldoxime dehydratase derived from Pseudomonas chlororaphis B23 (OxdA). The positive mutant (OxdA-L318I, E=68) improved the enantiomeric ratio E by 6-fold as compared to the wild type enzyme (OxdA-wild, E=11). The racemic precursor of (+/-)-5-(chloromethyl)-4, 5-dihydroisoxazole, used in the reaction, can be synthesized from readily available allyl chloride without utilizing highly toxic cyanide. The enantiopure (S)-5-(chloromethyl)-4, 5-dihydroisoxazole remaining in the kinetic resolution can be transformed into corresponding chiral (S)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutanenitrile without loss of enantiomeric excess by treating it with triethylamine in acetonitrile (99 % ee, 72 % isolated yield) or catalysis of OxdA-wild enzyme (99 % ee, 88 % isolated yield).

Automated summary

A biocatalyst with selective enantioselectivity was developed through mutagenesis on aldoxime dehydratase derived from Pseudomonas chlororaphis B23, resulting in the synthesis of chiral compounds.