Using crude extracts of organisms as biocatalysts may be the
right solution for they are environmentally-benign, inexpensive
and simple in preparation. Moreover, generally, a relatively crudepreparation is far more stable than a highly purified enzyme [8].
Some efforts have been made to use crude extracts of organisms as
biocatalysts for organic synthesis. For example, a crude extract of
the button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) was employed to
catalyse the domino reaction between phenol and cyclic 1,3-
dicarbonyls using atmospheric oxygen as the oxidizing agent and
yielding annulated benzofuranes [9]. A crude horse liver
homogenate was used as a biocatalyst to catalyse the acylglucuronide
of mycophenolic acid [10]. Crude preparations of various
plants were used to catalyse bioreduction of carbonyl compounds
and alcohol biooxidation [11]. However, the reported reaction
types catalysed by crude extracts of organisms are very limited.