Patent 7919287 was granted and assigned to E.I. Du Pont De Nemours And Company on April, 2011 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A process is provided to improve the specific activity of an enzyme catalyst having nitrilase activity when converting glycolonitrile to glycolic acid under aqueous reaction conditions. Inclusion of an effective amount of at least one amine protectant improves the specific activity and catalytic productivity of the enzyme catalyst.