Ultrafast synthesis of isoquercitrin by enzymatic hydrolysis of rutin in a continuous-flow microreactor

Isoquercitrin is a rare flavonol glycoside with a wide range of biological activities and is a key synthetic intermediate for the production of enzymatically modified isoquercitrin. In order to establish an ultrafast bioprocess for obtaining isoquercitrin, a novel continuous flow biosynthesis of isoquercitrin using the hesperidinase-catalyzed hydrolysis of rutin in a glass-polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microreactor was first carried out. Using the developed microchannel reactor (200μm width, 50μm depth, and 2 m length) with one T-shaped inlet and one outlet, the maximum yield of isoquercitrin (98.6%) was achieved in a short time (40 min) under the following optimum conditions: rutin concentration at 1 g L-1, hesperidinase concentration at 0.1 g mL-1, reaction temperature at 40°C, and a flow rate at 2 μL min-1. The activation energy value Ea of the enzymatic reaction was 4.61 kJ mol-1, and the reaction rate and volumetric productivity were approximately 16.1-fold and 30% higher, respectively, than those in the batch reactor. Thus, the use of a continuous-flow microreactor for the enzymatic hydrolysis of rutin is an efficient and simple approach to achieve a relative high yield of isoquercitrin