Multi‐enzymatic routes for the targeted synthesis of enantiopure vicinal amino alcohols

The need to overcome the dependency on fossil fuels stimulates the research of alternative resources for the manufacture of chemicals. An important aspect of this approach concerns the valorization of unavoidable lignocellulose waste, along with the establishment of green chemical methods. In this context, biocatalysts have a central function. In general, biocatalysis is considered safe, sustainable and selective. Moreover, enzymes are often compatible with each other and can operate simultaneously under the same reaction conditions. This enables the implementation of multi-step reactions in one-pot. All these qualities are highly appreciated in particular in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Among them, vicinal amino alcohol moieties are found in several biologically active compounds and natural products. In this thesis, we report the development of multi-enzymatic cascade reactions for the targeted synthesis of optically active vicinal amino alcohols with a focus on phenylpropanolamine and phenylethanolamine isomers. The goal was pursued through two independent cascades: i) the asymmetric one-pot enzymatic synthesis of diols starting from aromatic olefins and ii) the multi-enzymatic one-pot conversion of diols to the correspondent enantiopure vicinal amino alcohols.