Biologically important nucleosides: modern trends in biotechnology and application

Modern trends in biotechnology of nucleosides of biochemical and medicinal importance are outlined. Emphasis is made on the enzymatic transformations within the general chemo-enzymatic approach to the synthesis of nucleosides. Some aspects of (i) the functioning of enzymes of nucleic acid metabolism of interest as biocatalysts, (ii) the transglycosylation reaction using sugar modified nucleosides as donors of carbohydrate residues and heterocyclic bases as acceptors catalyzed by nucleoside phosphorylases and N-deoxyribosyltransferases, (iii) the miscellaneous transformations employing D-pentofuranose 5-phosphates or α-D-pentofuranose 1-phosphates as universal glycosylatig substrates, (iv) the retrosynthesis, and (v) the one-pot transformation of D-pentoses into nucleosides are considered.