From discrete particle to single cell catalysis

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Detlev Belder
• Subject Area: Analytical Chemistry ; Biological Process Engineering ; Organic Molecular Chemistry - Synthesis and Characterisation
• Term: from 2015 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 251124697

Microfluidic systems enable the analysis of processes on the single particle or cell level. While single cell studies based on fluorescence detection are the current state of the art in the life sciences and biochemical research, respective activities in synthetic chemistry and biocatalysis are still missing. The goal of project 1 is to develop enabling technologies, which allow the study of heterogeneously catalyzed organic syntheses as well as whole cell catalysis at the smallest possible dimensions. The ultimate goal is to explore stereoselective conversions in solution down to the single catalyst particle level. This challenge will be tackled by developing approaches to encapsulate, incubate, and analyse single particles in microfluidic droplet chips. These devices are then seamlessly hyphenated to analysis techniques such as mass spectrometry, ion mobility spectrometry, and chip-based liquid chromatography to monitor the turn-over and the selectivity of single catalyst species. Eventually this approach could shed light on the exciting question if and how individual catalyst species differ in enantioselectivity, which in turn would contribute to the basic understanding and the development of heterogeneous as well as whole cell catalysis.

• DFG Programme: Research Units
• Subproject of: FOR 2177: Integrated Chemical Micro Laboratories
• International Connection: Italy
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Dr. Alessandro Massi