Smart enzyme immobilization in microstructured reactors

There has been much recent interest in the application of microstructured flow reactors as tools of biocatalytic process research and development. Continuous biotransformations are often best performed using a heterogeneous biocatalyst, obtained through immobilization of the applied enzyme preparation on the surface of the reactor's internal (micro)structure. Smart integration of enzyme immobilization in the design and operation of microstructured reactors has presented a considerable challenge for development. The immobilization should be stable, but also readily reversible to allow re-use of the microstructured element. We describe recent advances in the field of microscale enzyme immobilization and summarize recent applications of immobilized enzyme microreactors for biocatalytic synthesis.