Sikui Xie, Yu-Cai He
Lignocellulosic biomass, which consists primarily of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, is a promising renewable feedstock for producing high-value biobased amines. In this study, an integrated chemobiocatalytic strategy was developed to synthesize furfurylamine from corncob using a newly formulated deep eutectic solvent, [Bet][FA][LA], that provides both catalytic and solubilizing functions. Under optimized conditions, corncob was efficiently converted into furfural, which was subsequently aminated by recombinant Escherichia coli BM-AlaDH coexpressing an ω-transaminase and alanine dehydrogenase. The whole-cell catalyst enabled in situ regeneration of L-alanine, thereby reducing amine-donor requirements and improving biocatalytic efficiency. Integration of [Bet][FA][LA]-mediated chemocatalysis with whole-cell biocatalysis converted corncob into furfurylamine in [Bet][FA][LA]. The biocatalytic amination system could convert biomass-derived 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (320 mM) and vanillin (20 mM) into the corresponding amines in yields of 95.4% and 91.0%, respectively. This work establishes a sustainable route for converting lignocellulose-derived aldehydes into value-added biobased amines and advances the comprehensive valorization of lignocellulosic biomass.