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Open research questions in Enzyme Catalysis and Immobilization

114 gap statements mined from Enzyme Catalysis and Immobilization papers in our 4.5M-paper local library, which holds 1,159 papers on the topic — drawn mostly from each paper's own stated research gap, future-work, challenge and limitation notes, and its abstract. The ones listed below are a selection still marked open; each names the study that raised it, with a DOI link where the paper has one.

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What the literature leaves open

  • The need to develop a more environmentally friendly and efficient strategy for the chiral synthesis of α-Cyclopentylmandelic acid. The requirement for high optical purity of α-Cyclopentylmandelic acid for its application in pharmaceutical synthesis and asymmetric catalysis.

    Derivatization-Assisted Lipase-Mediated Separation of Optically Pure α-Cyclopentylmandelic Acid Through Enhanced Substrate Recognition · 2026 · DOI

  • Conventional enzyme engineering approaches are limited by labour-intensive workflows and high costs. The lack of a unified synthesis of emerging AI methodologies for enzyme engineering. The need for a more efficient and predictive approach to enzyme engineering.

    AI-Driven Enzyme Engineering: Emerging Models and Next-Generation Biotechnological Applications · 2025 · DOI

  • The paper identifies challenges related to the expression and purification of the enzyme, which was largely expressed as inclusion bodies in E. coli. It also highlights the need for a better understanding of the enzyme's biochemical properties and its potential for low-temperature biocatalysis.

    A CALB-like Cold-Active Lipolytic Enzyme from Pseudonocardia antarctica: Expression, Biochemical Characterization, and AlphaFold-Guided Dynamics · 2025 · DOI

  • Industrial biocatalysts are strongly influenced by their physicochemical environment, yet systematic studies on how metals and macromolecular crowding influence metal‐independent esterases remain scarce.

    Metal‐Dependent Effects and Crowding Robustness of Pseudomonas fluorescens Esterase I · 2026 · DOI

  • Compared with well‐characterized zinc‐dependent ADHs, FeADHs producing such compounds remain poorly defined regarding assignment to genetic locus, biochemical and biophysical properties, and metal specificity.

    ω‐Hydroxyacid Dehydrogenases From Clostridium viride : Iron‐Containing Biocatalysts With Biotechnological Potential · 2026 · DOI

  • While enzymatic saccharification efficiently depolymerizes cellulose into glucose, its conversion to starch is fundamentally limited by the insufficient catalytic efficiency, poor substrate selectivity of key enzymes, and the reversibility of the core reactions they catalyze.

    Glucose-to-Starch Conversion by a Synthetic Enzymatic Cascade · 2026 · DOI

  • However, its ability to grow on formate and the subsequent coupling of that process to recombinantly produced redox enzymes for the efficient production of high-value-added products in a biotransformation has not yet been established.

    Rieske Oxygenase‐Catalyzed Biotransformations in Recombinant Cupriavidus necator Fueled by Formate Oxidation · 2025 · DOI

  • However, the stereo-catalytic mechanism of CESH producing L(+)-tartaric acid (CESH[L]) remains unclear.

    Deciphering the stereo-specific catalytic mechanisms of cis-epoxysuccinate hydrolases producing L(+)-tartaric acid · 2024 · DOI

  • Mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) binds the small metabolite inositol hexakisphosphate (IP 6) as shown in structures of mTOR; however, it remains unclear if IP 6, or any other inositol phosphate species, function as an integral structural element(s) or catalytic regulator(s) of mTOR.

    Inositol phosphates dynamically enhance stability, solubility, and catalytic activity of mTOR · 2024 · DOI

  • The cost of the support and the immobilization process must be compensated by the increase in volumetric productivity. The use of CLEAs can eliminate the need for expensive supports, but may result in a high concentration of activity per volume of reactor.

    APLICAÇÃO DE ENZIMAS INDUSTRIAIS IMOBILIZADAS EM PROCESSOS BIOTECNOLÓGICOS DE ESCALA INDUSTRIAL · 2026 · DOI

  • The current production methods for 1,12-dodecanediol have limitations in terms of energy consumption and environmental concerns. There is a need for a sustainable and efficient production route for 1,12-dodecanediol.

    ATP regeneration-driven biocatalytic production of 1,12-dodecanediol with improved cofactor supply · 2026 · DOI

  • The need for biostimulators to enhance the production of exocellular lipases. The lack of optimized nutrient media for the submerged cultivation of the fungal strain Rhizopus arrhizus CNMN FD 03.

    Coordination compounds of iron(III) - exocellular lipase synthesis stimulatory properties by the fungal strain Rhizopus arrhizus CNMN FD 03 · 2026 · DOI

  • The need to balance exploration and exploitation in complex reaction spaces. The challenge of generating robust predictive reaction models from large amounts of automated experimental data.

    An autonomous lab for data-driven homogeneous catalysis · 2026 · DOI

  • The gap is addressed through the development of a novel sequence-guided engineering approach.

    Enhancing CYP4B1 catalytic performance through an orthologous sequence-guided engineering approach · 2026 · DOI

  • Although numerous approaches for accessing simple amino alcohols are well established, methods specifically targeting the construction of the α ‐hydroxy‐ β ‐amino ketones motif have been rarely explored.

    Enantioselective Synthesis of α ‐Hydroxy‐ β ‐Amino Ketones via Engineered ThDP ‐Dependent Enzyme Catalysis · 2026 · DOI

  • Conventional monooxygenase-/peroxygenase-based biocatalytic platforms for the conversion of VitD 3 to value-added 25OHVitD 3 are generally limited by a low selectivity and yield, costly reliance on cyclodextrins and electron donor systems, or by the use of toxic co-substrates.

    Highly selective whole-cell 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 synthesis using molybdenum-dependent C25-steroid dehydrogenase and cyclodextrin recycling · 2024 · DOI

  • Celite® 545 adsorption resulted in moderate conversion rates, limited by the electrostatic interactions restricting enzyme activity.

    Enhancing rhamnolipid production via immobilized Pseudomonas stutzeri lipase: A comparative study · 2024 · DOI

  • Limited substrate scope and reaction diversity. Many enzymes are still incompatible with structurally complex or highly functionalized pharmaceutical intermediates.

    Biocatalysis-driven green drug synthesis: Enzyme engineering and sustainable manufacturing approaches · 2026 · DOI

  • To develop new immobilization techniques that can improve the stability and productivity of enzymes. To study the effect of different supports on the kinetics and efficiency of enzymatic reactions. To explore the use of CLEAs in different industrial biotechnological processes.

    APLICAÇÃO DE ENZIMAS INDUSTRIAIS IMOBILIZADAS EM PROCESSOS BIOTECNOLÓGICOS DE ESCALA INDUSTRIAL · 2026 · DOI

  • LPMO research stands at a pivotal juncture of methodological transformation.

    Protein engineering and high-throughput screening of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases: strategies, challenges, and prospects for industrial applications · 2026 · DOI

  • Experimental validation of the putative propeptide's function, - Detailed kinetic analysis using natural triglycerides, - Elucidation of the functional role of the proline-rich N-terminal…

    A CALB-like Cold-Active Lipolytic Enzyme from Pseudonocardia antarctica: Expression, Biochemical Characterization, and AlphaFold-Guided Dynamics · 2025 · DOI

  • AI-driven enzyme design and predictive engineering. Engineering microbial 'drug factories' by synthetic biology.

    Biocatalysis-driven green drug synthesis: Enzyme engineering and sustainable manufacturing approaches · 2026 · DOI

  • Investigation of the scalability of the biocatalytic system. Evaluation of the use of other alternative cofactors to NADPH. Optimization of the production process for improved yields and efficiency.

    ATP regeneration-driven biocatalytic production of 1,12-dodecanediol with improved cofactor supply · 2026 · DOI

  • Lack of a biocompatible and efficient method for enzyme binding onto bacterial cells - Limited ability to create single-cell systems for cascade reactions - Need for a distinct way to enable enzyme-binding onto the surface of bacterial…

    A Cholesterol Analogue for Cell‐Surface Enzyme Display · 2026 · DOI

  • The process of identifying optimal catalysts remains challenging due to the vast and complex parameter space inherent to homogeneous catalysis, - The combinatorial explosion of parameters makes exhaustive experimental screening impractical, - The study does not provide a comprehensive comparison with other autonomous catalysis…

    An autonomous lab for data-driven homogeneous catalysis · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Enzyme Catalysis and Immobilization

Most recent work

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Open questions raised by papers listed on this page include: (1) Industrial biocatalysts are strongly influenced by their physicochemical environment, yet systematic studies on how metals and macromolecular crowding influence metal‐independent esterases remain scarce (“Metal‐Dependent Effects and Crowding Robustness of Pseudomonas fluorescens…”, 2026); (2) There is a need for a sustainable and efficient production route for 1,12-dodecanediol (“ATP regeneration-driven biocatalytic production of 1,12-dodecanediol with…”, 2026); (3) The lack of a unified synthesis of emerging AI methodologies for enzyme engineering (“AI-Driven Enzyme Engineering: Emerging Models and Next-Generation…”, 2025); (4) Its ability to grow on formate and the subsequent coupling of that process to recombinantly produced redox enzymes for the efficient production of high-value-added products in a biotransformation has not yet been established (“Rieske Oxygenase‐Catalyzed Biotransformations in Recombinant Cupriavidus…”, 2025); (5) The stereo-catalytic mechanism of CESH producing L(+)-tartaric acid (CESH[L]) remains unclear (“Deciphering the stereo-specific catalytic mechanisms of cis-epoxysuccinate…”, 2024). 114 gap statements have been mined from Enzyme Catalysis and Immobilization papers in our 4.5M-paper local library, which holds 1,159 papers on the topic; the gaps come from whichever of those papers state one. They are mostly the research gaps the authors state and the papers' abstracts, plus future-work, limitations and challenges passages. The ones listed below are a selection still marked open; each names the study that raised it, with a DOI link where the paper has one, so you can read the original claim in context.

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