Table 2.
Industrial biotransformations [74] employing wild type yeast whole-cell biocatalysts ordered by E.C. numbers
| Yeast strain | Enzyme name (E.C. No.) | Reaction | Product/Application | Company |
| Zygosaccharomyces rouxii | Alcohol NAD+ oxidoreductase (1.1.1.1) |  |
LY 300164 = Benzodiazepine/tested for treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis | Eli Lilly and Company, USA |
| Geotrichum candidum | Dehydrogenase, NADPH-dependent (1.1.X.X) |  |
chiral β-hydroxy ester/precursor for cholesterol antagonist inhibiting HMG-CoA reductase | Bristol-Myers Squibb, USA |
| Candida sorbophila | Dehydrogenase (1.1.X.X) |  |
(R)-amino alcohol/intermediate for a β-3-agonist used for obesity therapy, and to decrease hypertension, coronary artery disease and the level of associated type II diabetes | Merck & Co, Inc., USA |
| Pichia methanolica | Reductase (1.1.X.X) |  |
Ethyl-5-(S)-hydroxyhexanoate and 5-(S)-hydroxyhexanenitrile/chiral building blocks | Bristol-Myers Squibb, USA |
| Candida boidinii (E2) [and E. coli with cloned E1]a or Pichia pastoris (E2 + cloned E1)b | E2: FDH (1.2.1.2) [E1: PheDH (1.4.1.20) from Thermoactinomyces intermedius] |  |
(S)-2-Amino-5-(1,3-dioxolan-2-yl)-pentanoic acid/one building block for Omapatrilat synthesis (ACE and NEP inhibitor)c | Bristol-Myers Squibb, USA |
| Trigonopsis variabilis ATCC 10679 | D-Amino acid oxidase (1.4.3.3) |  |
L-6-Hydroxynorleucine/chiral intermediate for synthesis of vasopeptidase inhibitor and other antihypertensive metalloproteinase inhibitors | Bristol-Myers Squibb, USA |
| Baker's yeast (= Saccharomyces cerevisiae) | Reductase (1.X.X.X) |  |
The corresponding dione is an intermediate for the synthesis of natural 3-hydroxycarotenoids (e.g. cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin) and other terpenoid compounds. | Hoffmann La-Roche, CH |
| Cryptococcus laurentii (E1) [and Achromobacter obae (E2)]a | E1: Lactamase (3.5.2.11) and [E2: Racemase (5.1.1.15)]a |  |
L-Lysine/nutrient and food supplement | Toray Industries Inc., Japan |
| Saccharomyces cerevisiae | Pyruvate decarboxylase (4.1.1.1) |  |
PAC → ephedrine and pseudoephedrine/treatment of asthma, hay fever, and used for bronchodilating agent and decongestant | Krebs Biochemicals & Industries Ltd., India |
| Candida rugosa | Enoyl-CoA hydratase (4.2.1.17) |  |
(R)-β-Hydroxy-n-butyric acid and (R)-β-Hydroxy-isobutyric acid/chiral synthons for carbapenem intermediate and captopril (ACE-inhibitor)c, respectively | Kanegafuchi Chemical Industries Co., Ltd., Japan |
| Rhodotorula rubra | L-Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (4.3.1.5) |  |
L-phenylalanine/artificial sweetener aspartame, parenteral nutrition, chiral building block for Rutamycin B synthesis | Genex Corporation, USA |
aBacterial whole-cell biocatalyst. bIn this case, also engineered P. pastoris cells were employed. cACE = angiotensin-converting enzyme; NEP = neutral endopeptidase.