The latest results from our research group in the biotransformation of triptolides and bufadienolides were reviewed. The trends in the development of biotransformation in the future were also briefly discussed.
Microbial transformation of gastrodin by Mucor spinosus strain 3.3450, resulted in a product with a transformation rate close to 100 per cent. This product was identified as p-hydroxy benzyl alcohol on the basis of its 1H, 13C NMR and EI-MS spectral data. It could be inferred that the enzyme responsible for the biotransforma-tion reaction was a kind of extracellular and constitutive enzyme since the transformation reaction of the substrate could be carried out in cell free extracts of the fermentation broth of the Mucor spinosus.
