abstract |
The present disclosure provides methods for preparing tryptophans and tryptophan derivatives. The methods include: combining i) an indole substrate or azulene substrate, ii) a serine substrate, and iii) an engineered tryptophan synthase β-subunit (TrpB); and maintaining the resulting mixture under conditions sufficient to form the product compound. The engineered TrpB comprises a PLP binding loop mutation, a helix 1 mutation, a strand 7-8 mutation, or a combination thereof. New TrpB variants are also described. |