MATBIOCAT - Design of Hybrid Protein-Inorganic Nanostructured Biomaterials for Advanced Heterogeneous Catalysis
MATBIOCAT focuses on merging synthetic materials with biomolecules to create functional nanostructures, enhancing performance in extreme conditions for biotransformation processes. The aim is to improve biocatalyst stability in organic solvents, high temperatures, and extreme pH values. Three main sections involve enzyme encapsulation in polymeric networks, designing metal-based nano/microstructures, and creating enzymatic bioreactors. Collaboration across enzymology, polymer chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and material science contributes to this multidisciplinary effort. Challenges include ordered placement of biocatalysts in stable films or microstructures to preserve catalytic performance. The project's ultimate goal is to develop advanced biomaterials with improved enzymatic function, holding potential for various applications.
Merging synthetic materials with biomolecules into well-defined and functional nanostructures, for the sake of designing so-called biohybrid systems, is a rapidly progressing novel line of research. These hybrid materials often exhibit improved performances due to the mutual beneficial effect at the interfase of the biomolecules and the inorganic or polymeric environment in which they are accomodated. Thus, this project aims to take advantage of such stabilization effect in order to improve the properties and performance of the biocatalysts in organic solvents, at high temperatures and extreme pH values, foccusing the main goal of this proposal on the improvement of the industrial and technological processes. Therefore, we seek to intercede on the enzyme denaturation and, thus, inactivation under such extreme conditions that usually are needed to perform specific biotransformations, i.e. biogas or biomass processing (working pH ant temperature around 4 and 50°C, respectively) or chemoenzymatic synthesis of enantiomerically pure compounds (organic solvent content higher than 50%). The main goal of this proyect is the fabrication and optimization of biomaterials with catalytic activity through three experimentally different sections: (i) individual encapsulation of enzymes into polymeric networks that implies the formation of hydrogels of nanometric scale; (ii) design of nano/microestructures and films based on the coordination with di-/trivalent metals; and (iii) fabrication of enzymatic bioreactors and biocatalysts immobilization on cellulosic membranes and gold interdigited electrodes. Even though these general objectives will be developed in separated work packages, there will be a close interaction regarding the methodologies and materials used in each section: the encapsulated biocatalysts in (i) will have the properties needed for the design and production of the biohybrid materials with an inorganic support of (ii).
The final stage of the project (iii) will be dedicated to examinate the aplication possibilities and the scope of the newly generated materials. The most ambicious challenge that this project will face is related to the fabrication and development of advanced biomaterials in which the biocatalysts must be placed ordered in the space to form stable films or microestrutures in which the enzymes will remain embeded, preserving their catalytic performance. Therefore, the preservation of the protein structure will be the key challenge in the development of advanced materials.
This is clearly a multidisciplinary proyect, in which advances from different fields (i.e. enzymology, polymer chemistry, inorganic chemistry and material science), are combined. Besides, this project includes a number of national and scientific international collaborations with complementary expertise and it is expected to initiate further applied projects on the European frame.
This project is funded by MAT2017-88808-R/MCIN/ AEI /10.13039/501100011033/ y por FEDER Una manera de hacer Europa
