Solution

Enzymes are protein molecules that accelerate chemical reactions.  Without enzymes, there would be no life.  For example, the greening of leaves in spring, the ripening of foods, the digestion and absorption of food, all require enzymes.  Today, enzymes are also used in a number of industries for various applications.

Enzymes usually operate in approximately neutral pH at mild temperatures, generate no by-products, and are highly selective.  The shape of an enzyme is very important since it determines its function and ability to modify a substrate as shown below.

Enzyme's Reliance on its Shape.

Though enzymes are powerful, they are very sensitive to the environmental changes.  Heat or pH can change the shape of enzymes, called denaturing.  As illustrated below, once enzymes denature, they no longer function and cannot recover to original form.

Enzyme Denaturing Process

The stabilization of enzymes is of great interest in a number of applications where shelf life and stability during operation are required.  Due to short catalytic lifetimes, enzymes must be protected from environmental changes in order to maintain functionality and preserve utility.

One of these technologies, Armored Enzyme Technology, addresses enzymes’ instability by protecting an enzyme’s shape.  An Armored Enzyme is an individual enzyme that has a network of silica polymers attached to its surface.  As illustrated below, the “armor” on the enzyme acts as a shield to protect the enzyme from its environment that would otherwise ruin the enzyme.  The substrate is very small relative to the mesh size of armoring, allowing access of the substrate to the enzyme active site.  The coating also allows the enzyme enough interaction with the environment to be effective.

Armored Enzyme Protection

Our primary focus is the development of superior enzymes used in continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems for people with diabetes. With Armored Enzymes, CGMs will become more accurate, providing a pathway to become the standard in bloodless, painless, and reliable diabetic care.

U.S. and foreign patents were issued or are pending. The inventions were made with United States Government support and awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy. The Government has certain rights in the inventions. Our licensing partner, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is operated by Battelle.