Monodisperse Core-Shell Microparticles with Ultrathin Hybrid Shell for Rapid Enzymatic Reaction

In this study we report on a facile approach for fabrication of monodisperse core-shell microparticles with hybrid alginate/protamine/silica (APSi) shell of ultrathin submicron thickness as enzyme encapsulation systems for rapid enzymatic reaction.  Monodisperse water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions from microfluidics are used as templates for preparing the APSi microparticles via internal/external gelation and biosilicification.  The core-shell microparticles allow highly-efficient encapsulation of model actives bovine serum albumin (~99 %) during the fabrication process.  Their hybrid APSi shell with ultrathin thickness of ~420 nm provides fast mass transfer for the encapsulated model enzyme laccase to achieve rapid reaction.  Moreover, this rigid APSi shell also enables the encapsulated laccase with excellent reusability and storage stability.  These ultrathin-shelled APSi microparticles show great potential as efficient encapsulation systems for enzymes and biomolecules for rapid reaction, and as delivery systems for actives for biomedical application.