Expanding an Efficient, Electrically Driven and CNT-Tagged P450 System into the Third Dimension: A Nanowired CNT-Containing and Enzyme-Stabilising 3 D Sol-Gel Electrode

Abstract

Although electrochemically catalysed P450 reactions have been described, their efficiency and applicability remained limited. This is mostly due to low enzyme activity, laborious protein immobilisation and the small electrode surface. We established a novel protein immobilisation method for a determined orientation and electrical wiring of the enzyme without post-expression modification. By genetic introduction of an anchor-peptide our method is applicable for screening medium to large mutant libraries and detection by an electrode system. The system was expanded by using wired carbon nanotubes within a sol-gel matrix to create a three dimensional electrode.

Keywords: P450; assay; bio-electrochemistry electrode; electrochemistry; enzyme catalysis; nanotubes.