A hydrogel-based enzyme-loaded polymersome reactor

In this study we report the immobilization of enzyme-containing polymersomes into a macromolecular hydrogel. Whereas free enzyme shows progressive leakage from the hydrogel in a period of days, leakage of the polymersome-protected enzyme is virtually absent. The preparation of the hydrogel occurs under mild conditions and does not inhibit the activity of the encapsulated enzymes nor does it affect the structure of the polymersomes. The stability of the polymersome hydrogel architecture is demonstrated by the facile recycling of the polymersomes and their use in repeated reaction cycles. A 'continuous-flow polymersome reactor' is constructed in which substrate is added to the top of the reactor and product is collected at the bottom. This set-up allows the use of different enzymes and the processing of multiple substrates, as is demonstrated by the conversion of 2-methoxyphenyl acetate to tetraguaiacol in a reactor loaded with polymersome hydrogels containing the enzymes Candida antarctica lipase B (CALB) and glucose oxidase (GOx).