The enzyme benzoin aldolase () catalyzes the chemical reaction:
This enzyme belongs to the family of lyases, specifically the aldehyde-lyases, which cleave carbon-carbon bonds. The systematic name of benzoin is indeed is 2-hydroxy-1,2-diphenylethanone benzaldehyde-lyase (benzaldehyde-forming)âÂÂthe systematic name of benzoin is 2-hydroxy-1,2-diphenylethanone. Other names in common use include benzaldehyde lyase, and 2-hydroxy-1,2-diphenylethanone benzaldehyde-lyase. This enzyme employs one cofactor: thiamin diphosphate.
As of late 2007, 3 structures have been solved for this class of enzymes, with PDB accession codes , , and .