Halohydrin dehalogenases are promiscuous biocatalysts, which enable asymmetric ring opening reactions of epoxides with various anionic nucleophiles. However, despite the increasing interest in such asymmetric transformations, the substrate scope of G-type halohydrin dehalogenases toward cyclic epoxides has remained largely unexplored, even though this subfamily is the only one known to display activity with these sterically demanding substrates. Herein, we report on the exploration of the substrate scope of the two G-type halohydrin dehalogenases HheG and HheG2 and a newly identified, more thermostable member of the family, HheG3, with a variety of sterically demanding cyclic epoxides and anionic nucleophiles. This work shows that, in addition to azide and cyanide, these enzymes facilitate ring-opening reactions with cyanate, thiocyanate, formate, and nitrite, significantly expanding the known repertoire of accessible transformations.
Keywords: biocatalysis; lyases; stereoselectivity; thermostability; β-substituted alcohols.
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