Research & Development World

  • Home Page
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Archeology
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Chemistry
    • COVID-19
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Market Pulse
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
      • Software
    • Semiconductors
  • 2021 R&D 100 Award Winners
    • R&D 100 Awards
    • 2020 Winners
    • Winner Archive
  • Resources
    • Digital Issues
    • Podcasts
    • Subscribe
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Webinars

Scientists Developed Enzymes With Remote Control

By ITMO University | November 21, 2018

The new system’s scheme. Credit: ITMO University

Scientists developed a method to enhance the activity of enzymes by using radio frequency radiation. The method requires making a special complex consisting of enzymes and magnetic nanoparticles. The particles can adsorb radio emission and convert it to heat, resulting in enzymatic processes acceleration by more than four times. Such method can be used to create radio-controlled biochemical systems and adjust metabolism in living organisms. The results are published in ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering.

Enzymes are involved in a variety of reactions in living organisms, and their effectiveness depends on a variety of conditions. Although usually the enzyme activity is controlled chemically, researchers from ITMO University showed that this can be done remotely using physical methods such as radio frequency field.

To make radio-controlled enzymes, the scientists synthesized a special complex in which an enzyme is enclosed in a rigid porous framework of magnetite nanoparticles. Whenever the radio field is applied, the nanoparticles adsorb radio emission and heat up, passing additional energy to the enzyme and resulting in the enzymatic reaction rate acceleration. An experiment conducted on a model enzyme, carbonic anhydrase, demonstrated that the reaction rate can be increased by more than four times.

“There are very few studies out there that explore enzyme manipulation through the radio waves. We were the first who managed to increase the activity of a non-thermostable enzyme. Typically, these enzymes change the conformation at high temperatures and then stop working. But placed within the rigid framework of nanoparticles, the enzyme is stabilized from structure rearrangements as the nanoparticles mechanically restrict the enzyme mobility,” comments Andrey Drozdov, member of ITMO University’s SCAMT Laboratory.

There are two key parameters among the advantages of the radio emission used in the work. On the one hand, such radio waves can easily go through the tissues, and on the other, they are absolutely harmless to the body. Thus, by using the radiofrequency field, you can control the activity of enzymes in the body and adjust cell metabolism. In the near future, scientists plan to try out this method on other enzymes in an attempt to influence the vital activity of bacteria or cells.

Since this topic has a lot of potentials, further work will focus on using the technique with other enzymes, as well as in living cells. For example, it is still unclear whether it is possible with this method to make bacteria or cells divide more often or, on the contrary, to stop their division,” notes Yulia Andreeva, the first author of the study.

Related Articles Read More >

Exothera to develop and manufacture COVID vaccine based on proprietary technology
New dangers in the woods — and the hope that research offers us
Novel mass spectrometry solution simplifies insight gathering into macromolecular complexes
ENPICOM launches display solution to accelerate antibody selection while maximizing precision
2021 R&D Global Funding Forecast

Need R&D World news in a minute?

We Deliver!
R&D World Enewsletters get you caught up on all the mission critical news you need in research and development. Sign up today.
Enews Signup

R&D World Digital Issues

February 2020 issue

Browse the most current issue of R&D World and back issues in an easy to use high quality format. Clip, share and download with the leading R& magazine today.

Research & Development World
  • Subscribe to R&D World Magazine
  • Enews Sign Up
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Drug Discovery & Development
  • Pharmaceutical Processing
  • 2022 Global Funding Forecast

Copyright © 2022 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search R&D World

  • Home Page
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Archeology
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Chemistry
    • COVID-19
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Market Pulse
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
      • Software
    • Semiconductors
  • 2021 R&D 100 Award Winners
    • R&D 100 Awards
    • 2020 Winners
    • Winner Archive
  • Resources
    • Digital Issues
    • Podcasts
    • Subscribe
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Webinars