Enantioselective Resolution of (±)-1-Phenylethanol and (±)-1-Phenylethyl Acetate by a Novel Esterase from Bacillus sp. SCSIO 15121

A novel microbial esterase BSE01281 identified from the Indian Ocean was cloned, expressed, and functionally characterized. Esterase BSE01281 could enanoselectively resolve (±)-1-phenylethanol and (±)-1-phenylethyl acetate through two types of enzymatic reactions. After the optimization of enzymatic reactions, BSE01281 could efficiently generate ( R )-1-phenylethyl acetate with high enantiomeric excess (>99 %) and high conversion (42 %) after 96 h trans-esterification reactions. Additionally, BSE01281 could also produce ( R )-1-phenylethanol ( e.e . > 99 %) and ( S )-1-phenylethyl acetate ( e.e . > 95 %) at a conversion of 49 % through direct hydrolysis of inexpensive racemic 1-phenylethyl acetate for 8 h. Optically pure ( R )-1-phenylethanol generated from direct enzymatic hydrolysis of racemic 1-phenylethyl acetate by BSE01281 is not easily prepared by dehydrogenases, which generally follow the “Prelog’s rule” and give ( S )-1-phenylethanol instead.