Effect of enzyme dehydration on alcalase-catalyzed dipeptide synthesis in near-anhydrous organic media.

The effect of enzyme dehydration by molecular sieves on the coupling of phenylalanine amide and the carbamoylmethyl ester of N-protected phenylalanine in near-anhydrous tetrahydrofuran was investigated. This coupling was catalyzed by Alcalase covalently immobilized onto macroporous acrylic beads (Cov); these immobilized enzymes were hydrated prior to use. The dehydration kinetics of Cov by molecular sieve powder were determined by incubating Cov with different amounts of molecular sieve powder for different periods of time (0-80 h).

Darcian permeability constant as indicator for shear stresses in regular scaffold systems for tissue engineering.

The shear stresses in printed scaffold systems for tissue engineering depend on the flow properties and void volume in the scaffold. In this work, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is used to simulate flow fields within porous scaffolds used for cell growth. From these models the shear stresses acting on the scaffold fibres are calculated.

Comparison of two-phase lipase-catalyzed esterification on micro and bench scale.

Lipase type B from Candida antarctica was used to catalyze the esterification of propionic acid and 1-butanol in a water/n-decane two-phase system on micro and on bench scale. The reaction was described by a Ping Pong Bi Bi mechanism with alcohol inhibition. The kinetic parameters on micro and bench scale were compared; no significant differences were found.