One-Pot Biocatalytic Double Oxidation of α-Isophorone for the Synthesis of Ketoisophorone

The chemical synthesis of ketoisophorone, a valuable building block of vitamins and pharmaceuticals, suffers from several drawbacks in terms of reaction conditions and selectivity. Herein, the first biocatalytic one-pot double oxidation of the readily available α-isophorone to ketoisophorone is described. Variants of the self-sufficient P450cam-RhFRed with improved activity have been identified to perform the first step of the designed cascade (regio- and enantioselective allylic oxidation of α-isophorone to 4-hydroxy-α-isophorone). For the second step, the screening of a broad panel of alcohol dehydrogenases (ADHs) led to the identification of Cm-ADH10 from Candida magnoliae. The crystal structure of Cm-ADH10 was solved and docking experiments confirmed the preferred position and geometry of the substrate for catalysis. The synthesis of ketoisophorone was demonstrated both as a one-pot two-step process and as a cascade process employing designer cells co-expressing the two biocatalysts, with a productivity of up to 1.4 g L⁻¹ d⁻¹.