Biocatalysed reduction of carboxylic acids to primary alcohols in aqueous medium: A novel synthetic capability of the zygomycete fungus Syncephalastrum racemosum

The zygomycete fungus Syncephalastrum racemosum shows the remarkable capability of reducing carboxylic acids to primary alcs. in water medium, at ambient temp. and pressure. The reaction does not require mol. hydrogen, and in most cases affords quant. transformations. The results herein reported highlight the basic mol. scaffold that can be accepted by the fungus, the effects due to substituents, and also the possibility that carboxylic acids can be generated in the reaction medium by enzymic hydrolysis of the corresponding Me esters. This biocatalyzed redn. implements the scarcely supplied enzymic toolbox for the conversion of carboxylic groups into primary alcs., which can be exploited for the optimization of sustainable synthetic procedures.