Enzymatic Polymerisation (Advances in Polymer Science) By G. M. Guebitz

The application of nature’s toolset is a fast-growing area in several industries, such as food, fine chemicals and polymers. Speciacally in vitro enzymatic catalysis has seen a steady increase in (industrial) applications where enzyme catalysis has established itself as an indispensable tool in the synthesis of small molecules. Examples can be found in the production of pharmaceutical intermediates, where biotechnology generates significant turnover and reduces the environmental impact. In recent years, enzyme catalysis was also successfully applied in polymer synthesis. The motivation for using enzymes in polymer synthesis was initially mainly scientic curiosity, but as this technology started to produce results comparable to conventional polymerizations, the potential was recognized. The possibility of making polymers that are not available from conventionalmethods and their natural character make enzymes a particularly promising catalytic system. The goal of this book is to provide an overview of enzyme catalysis in polymer synthesis structured according to the different enzyme classes used in these reactions. Notably, three of
the six enzyme groups have been reported in enzymatic polymerization in vitro, i.e. oxidoreductases, transferases and hydrolases....