Bottle-around-the-ship: A method to encapsulate enzymes in ordered mesoporous materials

Lipase has been encapsulated in ordered mesoporous materials in a one-step process. The procedure is simple and leads to well structured materials with enzyme loadings higher than those obtained through the post-synthesis approach. In the final bottle-around-the-ship material the enzyme would be entrapped in silica cages whose entrances are smaller than the enzyme itself. Therefore, reagents and products may pass through, while maintaining the active site entrapped and ready for reuse. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.