Reticular chemistry for improving the activity of biocatalysts: Synthesis strategies and advanced characterization techniques

Biocatalysis has become an indispensable tool for modern organic synthesis, both in academia and across pharmaceutical and chemical industries. In the past decade, new materials chemistry strategies have been employed to modulate and enhance the enzyme activity, uncovering the frontier of natural enzyme catalysis. In this review, we spotlight cutting-edge examples of reticular chemistry, including metal-organic frameworks, covalent-organic frameworks, and hydrogen-bonded organic frameworks to expand the scope of biocatalysts to achieve activities beyond the natural enzyme or conventional biocatalysts. Then, we discuss how modern advanced characterization techniques can assist in understanding the mechanisms of the enhanced catalytic performance at the nano-bio interface. These advances are anticipated to help researchers to create more useful strategies and use advanced characterization technologies to tackle the key issues as well as improve the biocatalysts performance so as to promote the research and application of biocatalytic reticular frameworks.