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Lipase from Pseudomonas cepacia as catalyst and diallyl carbonate as alkoxycarbonylating agent were used to efficiently synthesize wide range of prochiral 1,3-diamines and their subsequent desymmetrization. The final selective cleavage of the N-allyloxycarbonyl moiety performed under mild reaction conditions demonstrated the high versatility and potential of this chemoenzymatic route as a source of intermediates in the synthesis of related optically active nitrogenated derivatives.

The developments made in the use of biocatalysts for the desymmetrization of meso and prochiral compounds from 1990 onwards are discussed. It is strongly believed that genetic engineering techniques will continue to play a major role in the future research of enzymatic biocatalysis but without detriment to other more traditional approaches such as medium engineering and the screening for new biocatalysts.