Design of chimeric (metallo-) proteins for the development of novel bio-inspired materials

Biomineralization processes leading to complex solid structures of inorganic material in biological systems are constantly gaining attention in biotechnology and biomedical research. Two outstanding examples of biomineral morphogenesis are the formation of highly elaborate nano-patterned silica shells by diatoms, and the formation of HydroxyApatite (HA) in hard tissues of vertebrates. An interesting application of the biomineralization process is the enzyme immobilization. Enzymes are inherently “green” catalysts that can perform complex chemical tasks under mild conditions in a fully aqueous environment (i.e., under physiological conditions). Bio-minerals are hybrid materials consisting of organic and inorganic constituents. Understanding the molecular structure of the interface between organic and inorganic constituents of bio-minerals is a main goal in biomineralization research. The interactions between organic and inorganic components are assumed to be of key importance for the formation of the remarkable structures of biominerals as well as their outstanding materials properties. In this study, I have used bio-silica and HA as solid matrices to immobilize enzymes/proteins, to synthesize hybrid biomaterials for potential medical application. Solid-state NMR spectroscopy is very well suited to investigate biomaterials, their organic-inorganic interface, and to obtain structural information on the immobilized proteins/enzymes and on the inorganic matrices.