title: A coenzyme-independent decarboxylase/oxygenase cascade for the efficient synthesis of vanillin.
abstract: Vanillin is one of the most widely used flavor compounds in the world as well as a promising versatile building block. The biotechnological production of vanillin from plant-derived ferulic acid has attracted much attention as a new alternative to chemical synthesis. One limitation of the known metabolic pathway to vanillin is its requirement for expensive coenzymes. Here, we developed a novel route to vanillin from ferulic acid that does not require any coenzymes. This artificial pathway consists of a coenzyme-independent decarboxylase and a coenzyme-independent oxygenase. When Escherichia coli cells harboring the decarboxylase/oxygenase cascade were incubated with ferulic acid, the cells efficiently synthesized vanillin (8.0 mM, 1.2 g L(-1) ) via 4-vinylguaiacol in one pot, without the generation of any detectable aromatic by-products. The efficient method described here might be applicable to the synthesis of other high-value chemicals from plant-derived aromatics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University, 3-4-1 Ohkubo, Shinjuku-ku, 169-8555 Tokyo (Japan). tfuruya@fuji.waseda.jp.
authors.forename: Toshiki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Furuya
authors.forename: Misa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miura
authors.forename: Kuniki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kino
mesh_terms: D001547:Benzaldehydes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D002262:Carboxy-Lyases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D003067:Coenzymes; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D015394:Molecular Structure; D010105:Oxygenases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D001547:Benzaldehydes; D003067:Coenzymes; C100058:vanillin; D010105:Oxygenases; D002262:Carboxy-Lyases
keywords: biocatalysis; cascade reaction; decarboxylation; oxidation; sustainable chemistry