Enantioselective Reduction of α,β-Unsaturated Ketones and Aryl Ketones by Perakine Reductase

This report describes the enantioselective reduction of structurally diverse α,β-unsaturated ketones and aryl ketones by perakine reductase (PR) from Rauvolfia. This enzymatic reduction produces α-chiral allylic and aryl alcohols with excellent enantioselectivity and most of the products in satisfactory yields. Furthermore, the work demonstrates 1 mmol scale reactions for product delivery without any detrimental effect on yield and enantioselectivity. The catalytic mechanism, determined by 3D-structure-based modeling of PR and ligand complexes, is also described.