Covalent immobilization of horseradish peroxidase on novel macroporous poly(GMA-co-EGDMA) for phenol removal

Abstract

For the purpose of immobilization, one of the most commonly used enzymes is horseradish peroxidase (HRP). Different carriers can be used as supports for the immobilization of HRP: alginate, pectin, magnetic-beads, macroporous copolymers, silicas etc. Covalent binding of an enzyme to the carrier leads to the formation of strong linkage, thus preventing the enzyme leakage. Macroporous copolymers with different porous characteristics were used for the immobilization of horseradish peroxidase by employing periodate and glutaraldehyde method. Five and 25 mg of HRP were immobilized per gram of the copolymer. Increasing the amount of added enzyme leads to the increase of specific activity of immobilized enzyme. Copolymer with the pore diameter of 297 nm showed the most promising results in terms of specific activity. Immobilized enzymes can be used for the removal of phenolic compounds from waste effluents.