Non-enzymatic methods for aldose-ketose isomerization

Abstract

The enzymatic and non-enzymatic isomerization of aldoses to ketoses is a widely studied process. However, while the technology that uses enzymes is mature, non-enzymatic technologies are not fully developed. The objective of this review is to present the selectivity and efficiency of the alternatives reported in the literature for non-enzymatic interconversion of aldoses-ketoses, in order to evaluate the feasibility of its use in the food industry. Of the methods analyzed, the most promising are the ones that use ionic liquids due to the fact that they are fast and largely selective, but developing the technology that uses this type of liquids for the interconversion of a particular aldose-ketose pair is a challenge for research in the coming years.