Asymmetric bioreduction of substituted acenaphthenequinones using plant enzymatic systems: A novel strategy for the preparation of (+)- and (-)-mono hydroxyacenaphthenones

Regio- and enantioselective reduction of substituted acenaphthenequinones were conducted under mild reaction conditions using plant enzymatic systems. A screening of 15 plants allowed the selection of two suitable plants fulfilling enantiocomplementarity. The (+)- and (-)-mono hydroxyacenaphthenones were achieved with high conversion and good enantiomeric purity using peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch., conversion 98%, 71% ee) and carrot (Daucus carota L., conversion 95%, 81% ee), respectively. (C) 2008 Jing Nan Cui. Published by Elsevier B. V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society. All rights reserved.