The asymmetric reduction of prochiral carbonyl compounds by NAD(P)H-dependent carbonyl reductases represents a powerful method for the production of optically active alcohols. The stereoselectivity of a series of carbonyl reductases were evaluated toward the reduction of ethyl 2-oxo-4-phenylbutyrate (OPBE). A majority of reductases produced the ethyl (R)-2-hydroxy-4-phenylbutyrate ((R)-HPBE) with low to excellent enantiomeric excess (e.e.), whereas about 30% reductases catalyzed OPBE to form (S)-HPBE. Among them, the carbonyl reductase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (SeCR) and short-chain dehydrogenase from Gluconobacter oxydans (GoKR) exhibited 100% e.e., yielding the corresponding (R) and (S)-HPBE, respectively. However, the SeCR showed relative higher activity (29.0 U/mg) and affinity (Km of 0.22 mM) than those of GoKR. Docking analysis found that the interaction of OPBE with enzyme-NADPH complex determined the NADPH-provided hydrogen transfer and the configuration of reductive product. These results indicated that the three-dimensional (3D) structure of enzymes controlled the stereoselectivity of the reductive product based on the geometry of the substrate and cofactor.
Keywords: Prelog's rule; asymmetric reduction; carbonyl reductase; chiral alcohol; docking analysis.
© 2015 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.