Biocatalysis in nonaqueous media

Abstract In the past few decades, the scientific community have used aqueous solutions as the media for enzyme and whole cell biocatalysis reactions, but nonaqueous media also play a significant role in biocatalytic reactions, for example, in biotransformation technology. The design and discovery of efficient biocatalysis and has made tremendous progress for various synthetic applications in recent years. Versatile nonaqueous “green” solvents have been used in biocatalysis and are divided into three major solvent systems: ionic liquids (ILs), supercritical fluids (SCFs), and organic solvents. Recent works explain that enzymatic reactions in nonaqueous media offer new prospects for the production of useful chemicals such as surfactants, peptides and proteins, emulsifiers, wax, biopolymers, chiral drug molecules, etc. Compared with aqueous solvents, the feasibility of enzymatic reactions in nonaqueous solvents offers various potential aspects for biotechnological production. Biocatalysis also plays a key role in the production of various compounds with applications in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. In this chapter, we will discuss biocatalytic reactions and the role of nonaqueous solvents.