Exploring the segregating and mineralization-inducing capacities of cationic hydrophilic polymers for preparation of robust, multifunctional mesoporous hybrid microcapsules

One-Step Fabrication of Coconut-Like Capsules via Competitive Reactions at an All-Aqueous Interface for Enzyme Immobilization

A concept of interfacial competitive reaction between biomineralization and alginate gelation at an all-aqueous single-emulsion droplet interface to prepare robust coconut-like capsules (inner hard wall and outer soft wall) is developed. The concept is further applied for enzyme immobilization with high encapsulation efficiency, enzyme loading, mass transfer coefficient, and recyclability. The thickness and swelling properties of the shell are simply tunable by a competitive reaction. Our platform may open a green, facile, and efficient way to prepare organic-inorganic hybrid sustainable materials with tailored compositions and structures.

Glucose-activatable insulin delivery with charge-conversional polyelectrolyte multilayers for diabetes care

One of the most effective treatments for diabetes is to design a glucose-regulated insulin (INS) delivery system that could adjust the INS release time and rate to reduce diabetes-related complications. Here, mixed multiple layer-by-layer (mmLbL)-INS microspheres were developed for glucose-mediated INS release and an enhanced hypoglycemic effect for diabetes care. To achieve ultrafast glucose-activated INS release, glucose oxidase (GOx) was assembled with a positively charged polymer and modified on INS LbL. The mmLbL-INS microspheres were constructed with one, two, and four layers of the polyelectrolyte LbL assembly at a ratio of 1:1:1. Under hyperglycemia, GOx converts a change in the hyperglycemic environment to a pH stimulus, thus providing sufficient hydrogen ion. The accumulated hydrogen ion starts LbL charge shifting, and anionic polymers are converted to cationic polymers through hydrolytic cleavage of amine-functionalized side chains. The results of in vitro INS release suggested that glucose can modulate the mmLbL-INS microspheres in a pulsatile profile. In vivo studies validated that this formulation enhanced the hypoglycemic effect in STZ-induced diabetic rats within 2 h of subcutaneous administration and facilitated stabilization of blood glucose levels for up to 2 days. This glucose-activatable LbL microsphere system could serve as a powerful tool for constructing a precisely controlled release system.

Bioinspired construction of multi-enzyme catalytic systems

Enzyme catalysis, as a green, efficient process, displays exceptional functionality, adaptivity and sustainability. Multi-enzyme catalysis, which can accomplish the tandem synthesis of valuable materials/chemicals from renewable feedstocks, establishes a bridge between single-enzyme catalysis and whole-cell catalysis. Multi-enzyme catalysis occupies a unique and indispensable position in the realm of biological reactions for energy and environmental applications. Two complementary strategies, i.e., compartmentalization and substrate channeling, have been evolved by living organisms for implementing the complex in vivo multi-enzyme reactions (MERs), which have been applied to construct multi-enzyme catalytic systems (MECSs) with superior catalytic activity and stabilities in practical biocatalysis. This tutorial review aims to present the recent advances and future prospects in this burgeoning research area, stressing the features and applications of the two strategies for constructing MECSs and implementing in vitro MERs. The concluding remarks are presented with a perspective on the construction of MECSs through rational combination of compartmentalization and substrate channeling.

Hierarchical Porous Interlocked Polymeric Microcapsules: Sulfonic Acid Functionalization as Acid Catalysts

Owing to their unique structural and surface properties, mesoporous microspheres are widely applied in the catalytic field. Generally, increasing the surface area of the specific active phase of the catalyst is a good method, which can achieve a higher catalytic activity through the fabrication of the corresponding catalytic microspheres with the smaller size and hollow structure. However, one of the major challenges in the use of hollow microspheres (microcapsules) as catalysts is their chemical and structural stability. Herein, the grape-like hypercrosslinked polystyrene hierarchical porous interlocked microcapsule (HPIM-HCL-PS) is fabricated by SiO₂ colloidal crystals templates, whose structure is the combination of open mouthed structure, mesoporous nanostructure and interlocked architecture. Numerous microcapsules assembling together and forming the roughly grape-like microcapsule aggregates can enhance the structural stability and recyclability of these microcapsules. After undergoing the sulfonation, the sulfonated HPIM-HCL-PS is served as recyclable acid catalyst for condensation reaction between benzaldehyde and ethylene glycol (TOF = 793 h⁻¹), moreover, exhibits superior activity, selectivity and recyclability.

A highly expandable and tough polyacrylamide – alginate microcapsule

A highly expandable and tough microcapsule was prepared by water-in-oil emulsion polymerization. The diameter of the prepared microcapsule could be expanded to about 75 times larger than the original size without breakage.

Construction of Grape-like Silica-Based Hierarchical Porous Interlocked Microcapsules by Colloidal Crystals Templates

We present a facile strategy to prepare grape-like silica-based hierarchical porous interlocked microcapsules (HPIMs) by polystyrene colloidal crystals templates, whose structure is the subtle integration of open mouthed structure, hierarchical porous nanostructure and interlocked architecture. HPIMs are fabricated by replicating colloidal crystals templates that have a hexagonal close-packed structure; thus, theoretically, each microcapsule has 12 open mouths, and these open mouths with mesoporous microcapsule wall construct the hierarchical porous structure. Furthermore, the interlocked architecture of the microcapsules can endow HPIMs with excellent mechanical stability and recyclability. By adjusting sulfonation time, the morphology, shell thickness, and even mesporous size of the HPIMs can be precisely controlled. In addition, HPIMs with various compositions are obtained via this method, such as silica and aminopropyl polysilsesquioxane (APSQ). All these unique features derived from a readily available method will give products with a broader range of applications.

Coordination-Enabled One-Step Assembly of Ultrathin, Hybrid Microcapsules with Weak pH-Response

In this study, an ultrathin, hybrid microcapsule is prepared though coordination-enabled one-step assembly of tannic acid (TA) and titanium(IV) bis(ammonium lactate) dihydroxide (Ti-BALDH) upon a hard-templating method. Briefly, the PSS-doped CaCO3 microspheres with a diameter of 5-8 μm were synthesized and utilized as the sacrificial templates. Then, TA-Ti(IV) coatings were formed on the surface of the PSS-doped CaCO3 templates through soaking in TA and Ti-BALDH aqueous solutions under mild conditions. After removing the template by EDTA treatment, the TA-Ti(IV) microcapsules with a capsule wall thickness of 15 ± 3 nm were obtained. The strong coordination bond between polyphenol and Ti(IV) conferred the TA-Ti(IV) microcapsules high structural stability in the range of pH values 3.0-11.0. Accordingly, the enzyme-immobilized TA-Ti(IV) microcapsules exhibited superior pH and thermal stabilities. This study discloses the formation of TA-Ti(IV) microcapsules that are suitable for use as supports in catalysis due to their extensive pH and thermal stabilities.

MOF-templated rough, ultrathin inorganic microcapsules for enzyme immobilization

Enzyme-containing ultrathin titania microcapsules with rough surfaces were prepared by using MOF as a hard template to mediate the hierarchical structures of the microcapsule shell.

Incorporating mobile nanospheres in the lumen of hybrid microcapsules for enhanced enzymatic activity

Physical encapsulation of enzymes in microcapsules, as a mild, controllable method, has been widely utilized for enzyme immobilization. However, this method often suffers from the big mass transfer resistance from the capsule lumen. In this study, a novel biocatalysis system with enhanced catalytic activity is constructed through coencapsulating enzymes and nanospheres in the lumen of protamine/silica hybrid microcapsules, which are synthesized through the synergy of biomimetic silicification and layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly. When utilized as the host for catalase (CAT) encapsulation, the hybrid microcapsules maintain high mechanical stability, high enzyme loading, and low enzyme leaching. Particularly, because of the existence of mobile nanospheres, the mass transfer resistance in the microcapsules is significantly reduced because of the vigorous agitation, thus acquiring an enhanced catalytic activity. Our strategy may also find applications in drug delivery and biosensor fields.

Polydopamine microcapsules with different wall structures prepared by a template-mediated method for enzyme immobilization

Microcapsules with diverse wall structures may exhibit different performance in specific applications. In the present study, three kinds of mussel-inspired polydopamine (PDA) microcapsules with different wall structures have been prepared by a template-mediated method. More specifically, three types of CaCO3 microspheres (poly(allylamine hydrochloride), (PAH)-doped CaCO3; pure-CaCO3; and poly(styrene sulfonate sodium), (PSS)-doped CaCO3) were synthesized as sacrificial templates, which were then treated by dopamine to obtain the corresponding PDA-CaCO3 microspheres. Through treating these microspheres with disodium ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA-2Na) to remove CaCO3, three types of PDA microcapsules were acquired: that was (1) PAH-PDA microcapsule with a thick (∼600 nm) and highly porous capsule wall composed of interconnected networks, (2) pure-PDA microcapsule with a thick (∼600 nm) and less porous capsule wall, (3) PSS-PDA microcapsule with a thin (∼70 nm) and dense capsule wall. Several characterizations confirmed that a higher degree in porosity and interconnectivity of the capsule wall would lead to a higher mass transfer coefficient. When serving as the carrier for catalase (CAT) immobilization, these enzyme-encapsulated PDA microcapsules showed distinct structure-related activity and stability. In particular, PAH-PDA microcapsules with a wall of highly interconnected networks displayed several significant advantages, including increases in enzyme encapsulation efficiency and enzyme activity/stability and a decrease in enzyme leaching in comparison with other two types of PDA microcapsules. Besides, this hierarchically structured PAH-PDA microcapsule may find other promising applications in biocatalysis, biosensors, drug delivery, etc.