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Updated: Sep 2, 2026

Immobilization of Multi-biocatalysts in Alginate Beads for Cofactor Regeneration and Improved Reusability
Published on: April 22, 2016
Star Polyelectrolyte Coacervates Enable Adaptive and Robust Enzyme Immobilization for Efficient Biocatalysis
Jie Zhu1, Zhiyuan Xiao1, Dong Wu1
1The State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers and Department of Macromolecular Science, Fudan University, Shanghai200438, People's Republic of China.
Abstract:
Enzyme immobilization in solid porous supports often suffers from a trade-off among enzyme loading, mass transport, catalytic activity, and operational stability. Here, we report a liquid-like immobilization platform based on star polyelectrolyte coacervates (SPECs) formed by simple mixing of oppositely charged star polyelectrolytes. The multivalent star topology organizes the coacervate into a compact yet dynamically adaptive network, enabling enzyme loading efficiencies exceeding 97% and order-of-magnitude enhancements in apparent catalytic rates. Moreover, SPEC exhibits topology-enabled ion exclusion that suppresses ion penetration even under high-salinity conditions, thereby stabilizing both the coacervate structure and embedded enzymes. As a result, SPEC maintains high catalytic activity under salinity, pH, temperature, and organic solvent perturbations and supports sustained continuous-flow biocatalysis. The platform is broadly applicable to diverse enzymes, including lipases from multiple biological sources, alkaline phosphatase, and trypsin, thereby establishing SPEC as a general and scalable immobilization strategy for efficient and practical biocatalysis.
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