10.1002/chem.200390110
The study focuses on the development and application of fluorogenic stereochemical probes for transaldolases, enzymes that catalyze the transfer of dihydroxyacetone between sugar phosphates. The researchers synthesized two probes, 6-O-coumarinyl-fructose (1) and its 5-deoxy derivative (2), which are designed to measure the stereoselectivity of transaldolases. These probes work by undergoing a retro-aldolization reaction catalyzed by transaldolases, producing a primary product that further reacts to release a strongly fluorescent product, umbelliferone, upon elimination in the presence of bovine serum albumin (BSA). The study also involved the synthesis of a stereoisomer related to tagatose (3), which serves as a control to assess the stereoselectivity of the enzymes. The purpose of these chemicals is to provide a fluorogenic assay system for transaldolases, suitable for high-throughput screening of enzyme libraries, particularly for directed evolution experiments aiming to alter enzyme stereoselectivity. The study includes the use of various other chemicals, such as erythrose 4-phosphate as a natural acceptor to shift the reaction equilibrium, and a range of solvents and reagents in the synthesis and purification processes.