PREPARATION OF l-MALATE FROM FUMARATE BY A NEW PROCESS "ENZYMATIC TRANSCRYSTALLIZATION"

Abstract

The present authors, in this paper, proposed a new process for the production of l-malate, natural form. In this new process the dried cells or the growing culture of Lactobacillus brevis was employed as fumarase preparation and divalent-metallo fumarate such as Ca- or Zn-fumarate was used as substrate. The enzyme reaction was carried out in the heterogenous phase, almost all the substrate being presented as water suspension. From the relationship between the equilibrium constant and the solubility ratio of product and substrate, the reaction proceeded onesidedly to the formation of l-malate. Thus, crystals of the substrate were apparently transformed into the crystals of the product in the heterogenous reaction mixture. For this category of reactions the authors proposed the name "enzymatic transcrystallization"