Microenvironmental modulation breaks intrinsic pH limitations of nanozymes to boost their activities
2024

Boosting Nanozyme Activity by Modulating pH

publication 10 minutes Evidence: high

Author Information

Author(s): Li Tong, Wang Xiaoyu, Wang Yuting, Zhang Yihong, Li Sirong, Liu Wanling, Liu Shujie, Liu Yufeng, Xing Hang, Otake Ken-ichi, Kitagawa Susumu, Dong Hao, Wei Hui

Primary Institution: Nanjing University

Hypothesis

Can we modulate the microenvironmental pH of nanozymes to enhance their catalytic activities?

Conclusion

The study demonstrates that modifying the microenvironmental pH of nanozymes can significantly enhance their catalytic activities under neutral conditions.

Supporting Evidence

  • The confinement of poly(acrylic acid) within MOF nanozymes lowers the local pH, enhancing their peroxidase-like activity.
  • Experimental investigations and molecular dynamics simulations support the hypothesis that modulating pH can improve nanozyme performance.
  • Nanozymes modified with poly(acrylic acid) showed a fourfold increase in activity at neutral pH compared to unmodified versions.

Takeaway

This research shows that by changing the pH around tiny catalysts called nanozymes, we can make them work better, like giving them a boost.

Methodology

The study involved confining polyacids and polybases within metal-organic framework (MOF) nanozymes to modulate their local pH and enhance their catalytic activities.

Limitations

The study primarily focuses on specific types of nanozymes and may not be generalizable to all nanozymes.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1038/s41467-024-55163-4

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