TUMCS | Thomas Höfer | 05.01.2021
A wonderful paper by Steffen and Christophe Léger’s group was published in Chemical Communications! This is another important step for biohybrid systems for industrial hydrogen production.
The [FeFe] hydrogenase is a promising biological catalyst for the electrochemical production of hydrogen. This is made possible by embedding the hydrogenase in a redox-active polymer film on the electrode.
A major obstacle in the commercial use is the production of hydrogenases on a large scale. The maturation, in which the active centre is incorporated into the protein framework, is the limiting step in the biosynthesis. Fontecave, Happe, Lubitz and colleagues have already developed an artificial synthetic pathway that could enable large-scale production.
Now, in collaboration with Christophe Léger’s group at the CNRS in Marseille, Steffen has been able to show that the maturation step is also possible directly on the electrode. Here, the protein backbone of the hydrogenase is embedded in a redox-active polymer and the incorporation of the active centre can be monitored by means of electrochemical measurements. This new approach is another important step towards the large-scale application of hydrogenases and towards robust biohybrid systems for the sustainable and green production of hydrogen.
Originalveröffentlichung
Felbek, C. et al. Artificial maturation of [FeFe] hydrogenase in a redox polymer film. Chem Commun 57, 1750–1753 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1039/D0CC08168J