No abstract

Enzymatic methods of synthesis of conducting polymers, physicochemical properties of the resulting products, and mechanisms of the reactions are considered. The enzymes involved in oxidative polymerization of monomers are briefly characterized. Examples of practical application of enzymatically synthesized conducting polymers are given.

Dihydroquercetin (or taxifolin) is one of the most famous flavonoids and is abundant in Siberian larch (Larix sibirica). The oxidative polymerization of dihydroquercetin (DHQ) using bilirubin oxidase as a biocatalyst was investigated and some physicochemical properties of the products were studied. DHQ oligomers (oligoDHQ) with molecular mass of 2800 and polydispersity of 8.6 were obtained by enzymatic reaction under optimal conditions. The oligomers appeared to be soluble in dimethylsulfoxide, dimethylformamide, and methanol. UV-visible spectra of oligoDHQ in dimethylsulfoxide indicated the presence of highly conjugated bonds. The synthesized oligoDHQ was also characterized by FTIR and (1)H and (13)C NMR spectroscopy. Comparison of NMR spectra of oligoDHQ with DHQ monomer and the parent flavonoids revealed irregular structure of a polymer formed via the enzymatic oxidation of DHQ followed by nonselective radical polymerization. As compared with the monomer, oligoDHQ demonstrated higher thermal stability and high antioxidant activity.

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are an alternative to conventional organic solvents in various biocatalytic reactions. Meanwhile, there have been few studies reporting on synthetic reactions in DESs or DES-containing mixtures involving oxidoreductases. In this work, we have studied the effects of several DESs based on betaine as the acceptor of hydrogen bonds on the catalytic activity and stability of laccase from the basidial fungus Trametes hirsuta and performed enzymatic polymerization of the flavonoid dihydroquercetin (DHQ, taxifolin) in a DES–buffer mixture containing 60 vol.% of betaine-glycerol DES (molar ratio 1:2). The use of the laccase redox mediator TEMPO enabled an increased yield of DHQ oligomers (oligoDHQ), with a number average molecular weight of 1800 g mol−1 and a polydispersity index of 1.09. The structure of the synthesized product was studied using different physicochemical methods. NMR spectroscopy showed that oligoDHQ had a linear structure with an average chain length of 6 monomers. A scheme for enzymatic polymerization of DHQ in a DES–buffer mixture was also proposed.

A new method for the enzymatic synthesis of oligoaniline soluble in organic solutions is developed. Aniline oligomers showed a high inhibition of copper corrosion in aqueous HCl and NaCl solutions.