Urease-catalyzed synthesis of aminocyanopyridines from urea under fully green conditions

•This work supports the catalytic performance of urease in organic synthesis.•This specific urease-catalyzed reaction inhibits by trace amount of Pb2+, Hg2+, or Ag+.•The authority of urease is bio-production of ammonia from urea.

This is an original work on catalytic performance of urease in organic synthesis which in one-pot dissociation of urea and condensation of the in situ generated ammonia with aldehydes, acetophenones, and malononitrile occurs in water to give 2-amino-3-cyanopyridines. Comparative experiments with ammonium salts supported the enzymatic specify of 0.01 g/mL (50 U/mg) of urease for bio-production of ammonia, while trace amount of heavy metal ions such as Pb2+, Hg2+, and Ag+ inhibit these specific reactions. The scalability and promiscuity of urease facilitate the applicability of the process for biotechnological organic reactions based on ammonia.

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