Kinetic resolution of aliphatic beta-amino acid amides by beta-aminopeptidases.

The growing demand for enantiomerically pure beta-amino acids to be used in the pharmaceutical industry and as fine chemicals requires the development of new strategies for their synthesis. The beta-aminopeptidases BapA from Sphingosinicella xenopeptidilytica 3-2W4, BapA from Sphingosinicella microcystinivorans Y2, and DmpA from Ochrobactrum anthropi LMG7991 are hydrolases that possess the unique ability of cleaving N-terminal beta-amino acids from peptides and amides. Hydrolysis of racemic beta(3)-amino acid amides catalyzed by these enzymes displays enantioselectivity with a strong preference for substrates with the L-configuration and gives access to various aliphatic beta(3)-amino acids of high enantiopurity. This approach presents a new access to enantiopure beta(3)-amino acids under mild reaction conditions and complements chemical asymmetric synthesis strategies.