Enzymes polyurethane sponges

Havens. P.L. and Rase, H.E. Reusable immobilized enzyme/polyurethane sponge for removal and detoxification of localized organophosphate pesticide spills, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., (1993) 32. 10, 2254-58. 

The U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense has developed an enzyme-immobilized polyurethane sponge that can absorb chemical threat agents that can then be destroyed by enzymatic activity. These polyurethane sponges have been found to have excellent adsorption properties related to organophosphorous vapors (Lukey et al. 2004). 

At the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, an enzyme immobilized polyurethane foam sponge to decontaminate the skin of chemical warfare agents in a wide variety of... 

The synthesis process for the sponges is well established, can be accomplished at room temperature, and the incorporated enzymes have been shown to be stable for over 3 years in a dry state and over 3 months if wet. A large-scale deployment of these sponges is currently limited by the amount of available enzyme. Use of a high-specificity enzyme is desirable but not a necessity because so much enzyme can be integrated into the polyurethane polymer surface area. 

To increase the OP/enz5mie stoichiometry, polyurethane-immobilized enzymes were combined with oximes (enzyme reactivators such as HI-6 Peter et al., 2007) so that the catalytic activity of OP-inhibited AChE (or BChE) is rapidly and continuously restored before irreversible aging of the enzyme-OP complex can occur. Thus, the OP is continuously detoxified. A reusable immobilized-enzyme sponge of ChEs and oximes for OP decontamination is the envisioned product. Next, it... 

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