Synthesis of a Cagelike Hollow Aluminosilicate with Vermiculate Micro-Through-Holes and its Application to Ship-In-Bottle Encapsulation of Protein

A study was conducted to demonstrate the synthesis of cagelike hollow aluminosilicate (CHA), with vermiculate micro-through-holes and its application to ship-in-bottle encapsulation of protein. It was demonstrated that biomacromolecules can be moved into the inner space of the CHA through its macro-through-holes and encapsulated within it by a ship-in-bottle method. The lysozyme-silica hybrid particles, used a substrate material in the investigations, were prepared by exploiting the silica precipitation activity of lysozyme with tetraethoxysilane (TEOS), as a silica source. It was observed that that the synthesis procedure consisted of a single step, such as mixing and stirring the lysozyme solution with TEOS. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images of CHA revealed that the original shape of the lysozyme-silica hybrid particles remain unchanged, after hydrothermal treatment, indicating that CHA's particle size is defined by the hybrid particle.