Bio-Inspired Supramolecular Catalysis

Johannes A.A.W. Elemans, JeroenJ.L.M. Cornelissen, Martinas C. Feiters, Alan E. Rowan, and RoelandJ.M. Nolte 

This chapter gives an overview of bio-inspired supramolecular catalytic systems that have been developed in our group since the early 1990s. Initially, attention was focused on the construction of relatively simple host-guest systems that were able to mimic certain aspects of enzymatic catalysis, e.g., substrate binding in a cavity and 

Supramolecular Catalysis. Edited by Piet W. N. M. van Leeuwen Copyright 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH Co. KGaA, Weinheim ISBN 978-3-527-32191-9 

In the last Section 6.4 new supramolecular approaches to construct synthetic biohybrid catalysts are described. So-called giant amphiphiles composed of a (hydrophilic) enzyme headgroup and a synthetic apolar tail have been prepared. These biohybrid amphiphilic compounds self-assemble in water to yield enzyme fibers and enzyme reaction vessels, which have been studied with respect to their catalytic properties. As part of this project, catalytic studies on single enzyme molecules have also been carried out, providing information on how enzymes really work. These latter studies have the potential to allow us to investigate in precise detail how slight modifications ofthe enzyme, e.g., by attaching a polymer tail, or a specific mutation, actually infiuence the catalytic activity. 

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