The laboratory of heterogeneous biocatalysis is applying multi-enzyme systems to synthetic and analytical chemistry by harnessing the exquisite selectivity of enzymes (biological catalysts) for the development of more sustainable and effective chemical processes. To address such goal, we are interfacing chemistry and biology utilizing multidisciplinary tool that involve molecular biology, enzymology and material chemistry. Our main research falls into the fabrication of multi-functional heterogeneous biocatalysts using cell-free biological machineries supported on solid materials and inspired by the spatial organization of metabolic pathways found inside the living organisms. We bridge the chemistry and the biology utilizing multidisciplinary tools that involve molecular biology, enzymology and material chemistry.
​​
RESEARCH LINES
​
-
Developing new analytical tools to advance the characterization of heterogeneous biocatalysts, aiming at finding relationships between some physico-chemical properties of the immobilized enzymes and their operational performance.
​
-
Fabrication of artificial metabolic cells by assembling biocatalytic cascades into synthetic scaffolds with precise control of the sub-micrometric localization of each biocatalyst.
​
-
Combining enzymes and materials to develop artificial systems with new functionalities like advanced biosensors, bio-inorganic energy generators, units for cell-free protein synthesis.