Direct production of allitol from D-fructose by a coupling reaction using D-tagatose 3-epimerase, ribitol dehydrogenase and formate dehydrogenase.

Allitol was produced from D-fructose via a new NADH-regenerating enzymatic reaction system using D-tagatose 3-epimerase (D-TE), ribitol dehydrogenase (RDH), and formate dehydrogenase (FDH). D-fructose was epimerized to D-psicose by the D-TE of Pseudomonas cichorii ST-24 and the D-psicose was subsequently reduced to allitol by the RDH of an RDH-constitutive mutant, X-22, derived from Klebsiella pneumoniae IFO 3321. NADH regeneration for the reduction of D-psicose by the RDH was achieved by the irreversible formate dehydrogenase reaction, which allowed the D-psicose produced from d-fructose to be successively transformed to allitol with a production yield from D-fructose of almost 100%. The reactions progressed without any by-product formation. After separation of the product from the reaction mixture by a simple procedure, a crystal of allitol was obtained in a yield exceeding 90%. This crystal was characterized and determined to be allitol by HPLC analysis, its IR and NMR spectra, its melting point, and optical rotation measurement.