This Special Issue is concerned with recent trends in bio- and organocatalysis, which present growing eminent fields for, e.g., medicinal and organic synthesis with construction of complex molecular skeletons. Some of the papers refer to contributions to be given at the International Symposium on Synthesis and Catalysis 2019 (ISySyCat2019). Catalysis certainly is among the oldest and most established fields in which multidisciplinary research is practised. Nobel Prizes for catalysis were given in all science-related categories, i.e. Chemistry, Physics, and Physiology or Medicine. In its history, at least 15 times Nobel Prizes were given to catalyst researchers, accounting for about 14% of the chemistry prizes and 19% of the prize winners. Both fundamental studies and applications were awarded. Whereas metal catalysis represents a technology with a long tradition being practiced for decades in nearly all segments of the chemical industry and an impressive track record for bulk as well as specialty and fine chemicals, organocatalysis and in particular asymmetric organocatalysis represents a more recently emerged catalytic discipline. Although the roots of asymmetric organocata ...