Erika Milczek, of Curie Co., will deliver a seminar entitled, "Biocatalysis in Industry: Small Molecule and Therapeutic Protein Drug Development using Engineered Enzymes." Hosted by James W. Canary.
Abstract: Enzymes have been used for decades to afford high regio- and stereochemical control in generating small molecules. However, there are several gaps in current technologies for delivering active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). This talk summarizes two key advances in the use of enzymes to functionalize molecules with pharmaceutical relevance. One example describes the evolution of cytochrome P450 isolated from Bacillus megaterium (CYP BM3) for generating drug metabolites. The second example outlines the use of penicillin G acylase (PGA) for the preparation of modified insulin. Due to the modest selectivity of chemical methods for protein conjugation and small molecule synthesis, there are increased efforts to develop biocatalysts that confer regioselectivity, thereby complementing the existing toolbox of chemical synthetic strategies. This talk summarizes key advances in the use of enzymes to functionalize proteins and small molecules with commercial relevance.