Abstract: 4-Hydroxy-2,5-dimethyl-2,3-dihydrofuran-3-one, which is better known by its name "FURANEOL.RTM." , is prepared by hydrogenolysis of an alkali- or alkaline earth metal derivative of fructose-1,6-diphosphate or fructose-1- or fructose-6-monophosphate in the presence of a metal catalyst.

Abstract: The potassium salt of phosphoenolpyruvic acid (PEP-K), used as a phosphorylation agent particularly in enzymatic reactions, is prepared by a process which consists of two steps, namely the treatment of a halopyruvic acid with a trialkyl phosphite and the hydrolysis of the dialkyl phosphate of enolpyruvic acid thus formed in an aqueous medium and in the presence of potassium hydroxide.

Abstract: 6-Deoxy-D-fructose and 6-deoxy-L-sorbose, useful starting materials for the synthesis of 4-hydroxy-2,5-dimethyl-2,3-dihydrofuran-3-one, are obtained from fructose-1,6-diphosphate by a reaction with lactaldehyde, in the presence of an enzymatic system composed of aldolase and triose phosphate isomerase (TPI) in an aqueous medium at pH 7.0, followed by the hydrolysis of the monophosphate salt thus obtained. The same deoxy-sugars are obtained by the reaction between 1,3-dihydroxyacetone phosphate and lactaldehyde in the presence of the same enzymatic system composed of aldolase and TPI. The aforementioned deoxysugars are also prepared by the reaction of 1,3-dihydroxyacetone with lactaldehyde in the presence of an anionic exchange resin.