One Step Forward in Exploration of Class II Pyruvate Aldolases Nucleophile and Electrophile Substrate Specificity

Abstract : Originally named according to their strict nucleophile specificity towards pyruvate, some pyruvate aldolases were demonstrated to be able to convert other nucleophiles. This study illustrates that the nucleophile 2-oxopentanoate successfully reacted with various aldehydes and even ketones. Unknown aldols with a 3S configuration were then isolated, characterized, and their stereochemistries could be set as either 4R or 4S by choosing the appropriate aldolase.