Lipase-catalyzed amidation of carboxylic acid and amines
The amidation reaction is of a very particular interest, especially in the pharmaceutical industry and always requires the activation of the acid with a large excess of reactants. Therefore, a large amount of waste is generated. In order to reduce the environmental impact of such reaction, we have developed enzymatic amidation conditions which are compatible with a wide range of amines and acids, in particular with the biologically relevant lipoic acid. Water is the only by-product generated during this reaction thus a very high atom economy is obtained. In addition, we have shown that the lipase can be recovered and reused several times without a significant loss of activity.