Biocatalytic and Chemo-Enzymatic Approaches for the Synthesis of Heterocycles

Heterocycles are ubiquitous structures in nature and can be found in many drugs and chemicals. Biocatalysts, alone or in combination with other metal catalysts, can be exploited for the construction of various heterocyclic rings under mild reaction conditions. This Short Review highlights the recent advances in the development of biocatalytic and chemo-enzymatic methods for the synthesis of both aliphatic and aromatic heterocyclic rings. 1 Introduction 2 Synthesis of Aliphatic Heterocycles 2.1 Piperidines, Pyrrolidines and Piperazines 2.2 Other Nitrogen-Containing Aliphatic Heterocycles 2.3 Lactones and Lactams 2.4 Other Oxygen-Containing Heterocycles 3 Synthesis of Aromatic Heterocycles 3.1 Pyrroles, Pyridines and Pyrazines 3.2 Furans 3.3 Bicyclic Aromatic Heterocycles 4 Conclusion.