Photobiocatalysis: A Solution to Overcome Challenges in Organic Chiral Synthesis

Abstract The progress in science and technology during this century is largely propelled by continuous research across diverse fields. However, researchers face obstacles in reaching their goals through traditional methodologies. Chirality, a common phenomenon in nature, is intricately associated with the physiological roles of biomolecules. As a result, mimicking natural processes emerges as a viable strategy. The asymmetric synthesis of biomolecules, which are essential for various physiological functions, has become a central focus for numerous synthetic organic chemists, thereby expanding the research landscape in this domain. The natural methods employed for synthesizing chiral biomolecules are fundamentally rooted in the principles of light and enzymatic activity. This natural approach motivates synthetic organic chemists to investigate photo‐enzymatic pathways or photo‐biocatalysis for the asymmetric synthesis of biomolecules. The literature review emphasizes the recent development in photobiocatalysis from 2018–2024 with a range of chiral bond formations occurring in reduction, oxidation, alkylation, amination, cyclization, C( sp 3 )‐C( sp 3 ), and coupling reactions, which has demonstrated greater ease through photobiocatalysis in comparison to chemocatalysis. The integration of biocatalysis and photocatalysis in non‐natural synthesis offers numerous advantages, such as innovative reactivity, improved enantioselectivity, eco‐friendly processes, and enhanced yields. It is expected that this minireview will yield significant insights into the chiral synthesis of other important molecules.