Aromatic N-heterocylic compounds are important building blocks for the synthesis of a wide variety of chemical products and biologically active compounds. Classical chemical methods for preparing these compounds have been optimized extensively and have allowed the economical manufacture of many products. The selective functionalization of alkylated pyridines and pyrazines as well as their carboxylic acids, however, stretches the limits of classical chemical methods. Our company has developed a series of bacterial cell-catalyzed biotransformations that extend known technologies and open new routes for the production of functionalized aromatic N-heterocycles. These biotransformations can be divided into two reaction types: the selective oxidation of alkyl groups on aromatic N-heterocycles and the selective ring hydroxylation of N-heterocycles.
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