• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.295-298
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• 1976

The fact that a reaction between organothioenamine phosphonate and styrene oxide produces a derivative of cyclopropane has been proved by structural identification. This suggests that an anionic oxygen atom from the ring opening of the styrene oxide by nucleophilic attack of thioenamine phosphonate links to the phosphorous atom to from a betaine as an intermediate which is followed by cleavage of the weak P-C bond. The dextrorotatory optical activity of the product showed that the reaction was under the control of steric stability of the benzyl carbon in styrene which leads to the product through a sterically stable pathway.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.1032-1040
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• 2006

Some Pseudomonas species can grow on styrene as a sole carbon and energy source. From the new isolate Pseudomonas putida SN1, the genes for styrene catabolism were cloned and sequenced. They were composed of four structural genes for styrene monooxygenase (styA and styB), styrene oxide isomerase (styC), and phenylacetaldehyde dehydrogenase (styD), along with two genes for the regulatory system (styS and styR). All the genes showed high DNA sequence (91% to 99%) and amino acid sequence (94% to 100%) similarities with the corresponding genes of the previously reported styrene-degrading Pseudomonas strains. A recombinant Escherichia coli to contain the styrene monooxygenase from the SN1 was constructed under the control of the T7 promoter for the production of enantiopure (S)-styrene oxide, which is an important chiral building block in organic synthesis. The recombinant E. coli could convert styrene into an enantiopure (S)-styrene oxide (ee >99%) when induced by IPTG The maximum activity was observed as 140 U/g cell, when induced with 1 mM IPTG at $15^{\circ}C$.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.279-283
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• 2007

Epoxide hydrolase (EH) gene of Caulobacter crescentus was cloned by PCR and expressed in Escherichia coli. The C. crescentus EH (CcEH) primarily attacked at the benzylic carbon of (S)-styrene oxide, while the CcEH preferentially attacked at the terminal carbon of (R)-styrene oxide, thus leading to the formation of (R)-phenyl-1,2-ethanediol as the main product. (R)-phenyl-1,2-ethanediol was obtained with 85% enantiomeric excess and yield of 69% from racemic styrene oxide via enantioconvergent hydrolysis by using recombinant CcEH as the single biocatalyst.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.530-537
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• 2006

Recently isolated, Pseudomonas putida SN1 grows on styrene as its sole carbon and energy source through successive oxidation of styrene by styrene monooxygenase (SMO), styrene oxide isomerase (SOI), and phenylacetaldehyde dehydrogenase. For the production of (S)-styrene oxide, two knockout mutants of SN1 were constructed, one lacking SOI and another lacking both SMO and SOI. These mutants were developed into whole-cell biocatalysts by transformation with a multicopy plasmid vector containing SMO genes (styAB) of the SN1. Neither of these self-cloned recombinants could grow on styrene, but both converted styrene into an enantiopure (S)-styrene oxide (e.e. > 99%). Whole-cell SMO activity was higher in the recombinant constructed from the SOI-deleted mutant (130 U/g cdw) than in the other one (35 U/g cdw). However, the SMO activity of the former was about the same as that of the SOI-deleted SN1 possessing a single copy of the styAB gene that was used as host. This indicates that the copy number of styAB genes is not rate-limiting on SMO catalysis by whole-cell SN1.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.557-560
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• 2006

The epoxide hydrolase (EH) of Aspergillus niger LK was expressed to high levels in Escherichia coli based on codon usage. E. coli, Rosetta (DE3)PLysS, containing a large number of tRNAs for rare-codons was employed as a host strain. The recombinant E. coli expressing A. niger EH showed an enhanced enantioselective hydrolysis activity toward racemic styrene oxide. Enantiopure (S)-styrene oxide with a high enantiopurity of 99% ee was obtained from racemic substrates.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.435-438
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• 2003

Epoxide hydrolase(EH) catalyze the enantioselective hydrolysis of racemic epoxides to corresponding diols. A recombinant Pichia pastoris with EH from Rhodotorula glutinis has been constructed by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR). The recombinant biocatalyst enantioselectively hydrolyze (R)-styrene oxide faster than (S)-enantiomer. The catalytic activity of recombinant biocatalyst was 7-fold higher than that of wild-type strain. The recombinant EH biocatalyst can be used for kinetic resolution for the production of enantiopure styrene oxide.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2000.11a
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• pp.593-596
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• 2000

Chiral epoxides are useful chiral synthons in organic synthesis and various biological methods have been investigated for the production of chiral epoxides. In this work, enantioselective resolution of racemic styrene oxide was investigated using an isolated Aspergillus niger sp. for the production of optically pure (S) -styrene oxide. The enantioselectivity and initial hydrolysis rates of racemic substrate were highly dependent on the pH, temperature, and the volume ratio of cosolvent. The experimental sets of pH, temperature, and the volume ratio of cosolvent were designed using central composite experimental design, and the reaction conditions were optimized using response surface analysis. The optimal conditions of pH, temperature, and the volume ration of cosolvent were determined to be 7.78, $28.32^{\circ}C$, and 2.4 %(v/v), respectively, and optically pure (S)-styrene oxide (> 99% ee) could be obtained with the 35 % yield by microbial enantioselective hydrolysis reaction.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.306-308
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• 2003

Enantioselective hydrolysis for the production of chiral styrene oxide was investigated using the epoxide hydrolase activity of a newly isolated Rhodosporidium kratochvilovae SYU-08. The effects of reaction parameters - buffer type, pH, temperature, initial substrate concentrations, phenyl-1,2-ethanediol concentrations on hydrolysis rate, and enantioselectivity - were analyzed. Optically active (S)-styrene oxide with an enantiomeric excess higher than 99 % was obtained from its racemate. with a yield of 38 % (theoretically 50% maximum yield) from an initial concentration of 80 mM.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.129-135
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• 2006

A gene encoding for a putative microsomal epoxide hydrolase (mEH) of a zebrafish, Danio rerio, was cloned and characterized. The putative mEH protein of D. rerio exhibited sequence similarity with mammalian mEH and some other bacterial EHs. A structural model for the putative mEH was constructed using homology modeling based on the crystallographic templates, 1 qo7 and 1 ehy. The catalytic triad consisting of $Asp^{233}$, $Glu^{413}$, and $His^{440}$ was identified, and the characteristic features such as two tyrosine residues and oxyanion hole were found to be highly conserved. Based on bioinformatic analysis together with EH activity assay, the putative protein was annotated as mEH of D. rerio. Enantiopure styrene oxide with enantiopurity of 99%ee and yield of 33.5% was obtained from racemic styrene oxide by the enantioselective hydrolysis activity of recombinant mEH of D. rerio for 45 min.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.599-603
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• 2012

The enantioselective hydrolysis of racemic styrene oxide in organic solvents was conducted using a recombinant E. coli expressing protein-engineered Mugil cephalus epoxide hydrolase (McEH). The volumetric total activity of the recombinant E. coli was enhanced 2.2-fold by IPTG induction at a mid-exponential growth phase. Among organic solvents with different log P values, isooctane was chosen based on the high activity and the enantioselectivity of McEH. Some lyoprotectants such as skim milk or sucrose enhanced the McEH activity. Enantiopure (S)-Styrene oxide with a 98% ee was obtained from the racemic styrene oxide with a 53.6% yield based on its theoretical yield in isooctane.