Isomerization of ribose to ribulose using basic amino acids as a catalyst

In a batch reactor, 0.01 mol/L arginine, lysine, or histidine, which are natural basic amino acids, was used as an environmentally friendly, green, catalyst to isomerize 0.2 mol/L ribose to the corresponding ketose, ribulose, at 110 degrees C. The changes over time in the conversion of ribose, the yield of ribulose, pH, and the absorbance of the reaction mixture at 280 and 420 nm were measured. The yield of ribulose was highest (ca. 8.5 %) when arginine was used as a catalyst, followed by lysine. Ribulose was also produced with histidine, but the yield was very low (ca. 1.5 %). On the other hand, the coloration, which was evaluated by the absorbance of the reaction mixture at 280 and 420 nm, was highest when lysine was used, followed by arginine. Therefore, arginine was the most suitable green catalyst for isomerizing ribose to ribulose among the three basic amino acids tested.

Automated summary

In a batch reactor, environmentally friendly and green catalysts, such as arginine, lysine, and histidine, were used to isomerize ribose to ribulose. The highest yield of ribulose (ca. 8.5%) was achieved when arginine was used as the catalyst, followed by lysine. However, histidine produced a very low yield of ribulose (ca. 1.5%). The coloration of the reaction mixture, evaluated by absorbance at 280 and 420 nm, was highest with lysine, followed by arginine. Therefore, arginine was found to be the most suitable green catalyst for the isomerization of ribose to ribulose among the tested amino acids.