Abstract
THERE is currently great interest in the synthesis of inorganic materials
of nanometre dimensions. The small size of these particles endows
them with unusual structural and optical properties that may find
application in catalysis and electro-optical devices. Such materials
may also prove valuable as precursor phases to strong ceramics. Many
approaches to the synthesis of these materials have focused on constraining
the reaction environment through the use of surface-bound organic
groups 1, polymers 2,3, porous glasses 4,5, zeolites 6, phospholipid
vesicles 7,8 and reverse micelles 9. Nanometre-sized particles may
also be produced in vivo by microorganisms 10. Here we describe a
novel synthetic route based on the use of a supramolecular protein
structure as a reaction cage in which to form inorganic phases. We
show that the iron-storage protein ferritin can be used to generate
nanometre-sized iron sulphide particles by in situ reaction of the
iron oxide core of the native ferritin. Discrete nanoscale particles
of manganese and uranium oxo-species can also be formed in the protein
cavity. Our results highlight the potential of adapting natural biomineralization
processes to problems in materials science, and suggest that the
use of biological molecules and their synthetic analogues in mediating
solid-state reactions constitutes a promising approach to nanophase
engineering.
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