9 Biomimetic Nanozymes

Abstract

Enzymes are closely linked to cell life, as they drive essential intracellular chemical reactions that govern biological processes. They efficiently generate or degrade specific biomolecules that can initiate or inhibit biological processes, regulating cellular behavior. Therefore, enzyme deficiency causes various diseases, such as gout, cystic fibrosis, and Krabbe？s disease. Researchers have attempted to develop artificial enzymes using various materials and chemicals to treat these diseases and use their intrinsic functions in diverse biological applications. Natural enzymes are 3？10 nm in size; emerging nanomaterials, such as nanoparticles (NPs), metal？organic frameworks (MOFs), and carbon-based nanomaterials, have been employed to mimic their functions. Elsewhere in this Science of Synthesis volume, there is a chapter on bioorthogonal nanozymes that perform non-native chemical reactions in cells (Section 6); this review presents biomimetic nanozymes (BNs) that replicate identical reactions of natural enzymes and their use in biological contexts. This article is a modified and updated version of a previous review by C. Keum, C.-M. Hirschbiegel, S. Chakraborty, S. Jin, Y. Jeong, and V. M. Rotello that was published in Nano Convergence (Springer).[1]