Menthol and fatty acid-based hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents as media for enzyme activation

• Main Authors: Elgharbawy, Amal A.M., Syed Putra, Sharifah Shahira, Warsi Khan, Huma, Azmi, Nor Azrini Nadiha, Abdullah Sani, Muhamad Shirwan, Ab llah, Nazurah, Hayyan, Adeeb, Jewaratnam, Jegalakshimi, Basirun, Wan Jefrey
• Format: Article
• Language: English; English; English
• Published: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI) 2023
• Subjects: QD Chemistry
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/103693/1/103693_Menthol%20and%20fatty%20acid-based%20hydrophobic.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/103693/7/103693_Menthol%20and%20fatty%20acid-based%20hydrophobic_SCOPUS.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/103693/13/103693_Menthol%20and%20fatty%20acid-based%20hydrophobic_WoS.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/103693/; https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/11/2/547
• Institution: Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia

This research aims to provide insights into the biological efficacy of a newly formed hydrophobic deep eutectic solvent (DES). A DES based on menthol was successfully synthesized with fatty acids. The DESs’ properties as enzyme activators were examined against a neat counterpart. The menthol:decanoic acid (1:1) combination showed improved thermal stability, strong catalytic activity, and reusability for up to four subsequent cycles under ideal conditions (pH 7.0, 40 ◦C for 2 h). The hydrophobic DES replaced hexane in ester synthesis, where RNL@DES5 showed better fatty acid conversion compared to neat RNL. This study demonstrated promising applications of hydrophobic DESs in non-aqueous organic reactions.