Bio-inspired morphological evolution of zinc oxide nanostructures on a tunable enzyme platform

• Diamine oxidase has been identified as a potential enzyme to tune the shape of nanomaterials.
• Room temperature control of the shape of ZnO nanomaterial.
• Parameters like solution pH and dissolved gases affect the enzyme's capability.

Diamine oxidase is a copper-containing enzyme with interesting structural dynamics sensitive to environmental conditions. The present work explores the applicability of the system as a tunable platform for the shape and size selective synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles under ambient conditions. Significant changes in the nanoscale morphology of ZnO have been observed, using scanning electron microscopy, with respect to changes in pH and gas atmosphere of the medium. More specifically, hexagonal plates of nanoscale ZnO were formed at pH below the isoelectric point of the enzyme and spherical particles at alkaline pH. Interestingly the average particle size of ZnO nanostructures increases with increasing oxygen content at acidic pH while the opposite trend is noticed at alkaline pH. The observations are explained on the basis of changes in the enzyme's surface charge, conformation and redox potential using a combination of techniques like zeta potential measurements, FTIR spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, open circuit potential studies and cyclic voltammetry. Thus the present work demonstrates the applicability of an enzyme as a dynamic bio-template for the synthesis of a multitude of ZnO nanostructures which are expected to add newer insight into bottom-up fabrication of oxide nanostructures.