Preview Formaldehyde as a C1 source for chemo-enzymatic synthesis of high-value-added chemicals

In this issue of Chem Catalysis, Ma and co-workers report an engi-neered benzaldehyde-lyase-catalyzed atom-economic synthesis of 1,2,4-butanetriol and 2-aminobutane-1,4-diol from formaldehyde and 3-hydroxypropanal. These results demonstrate the potential of biocatalysis for the environmentally friendly synthesis of high-value-added compounds with formaldehyde as a promising C1 source.