Cross-linking enzyme aggregates in the macropores of silica gel: A practical and efficient method for enzyme stabilization

Cross-linked enzyme aggregates of papain were prepared in commercial macroporous silica gel (CLEAs-MSG) in order to improve the operability and mechanical stability of CLEAs. CLEAs-MSG was obtained from simple adsorption, precipitation and one-step-cross-linking. CLEAs-MSG was characterized by stable structure that did not leak out enzyme from the macropores because of covalent bonding between CLEAs and MSG. The optimal temperature of papain CLEAs in MSG was 40–90 °C and the optimal pH was 7.0, which were improved compared to free papain and CLEAs. The CLEAs-MSG also enhanced the storage stability and thermal stability. Moreover, the CLEAs-MSG exhibited good reusability due to its suitable size and active properties. By using CLEAs-MSG of papain as biocatalyst, the kinetically controlled z-Ala-Gln synthesis was achieved with the yield of 32.9%, which was almost equal to that by using free papain as biocatalyst.