Spherical porous iron-nitrogen-carbon nanozymes derived from a tannin coordination framework for the preparation of L-DOPA by emulating tyrosine hydroxylase.

L-3,4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) is widely used in Parkinson's disease treatment and is therefore in high demand. Development of an efficient method for the production of L-DOPA is urgently required. Nanozymes emulating tyrosine hydroxylase have attracted enormous attention for biomimetic synthesis of L-DOPA, but suffered from heterogeneity. Herein, a spherical porous iron-nitrogen-carbon nanozyme was developed for production of L-DOPA. Tannic acid chelated with ferrous ions to form a tannin-iron coordination framework as a carbon precursor. Iron and nitrogen co-doped carbon nanospheres were assembled via an evaporation-induced self-assembly process using urea as a nitrogen source, F127 as a soft template, and formaldehyde as a crosslinker. The nanozyme was obtained after carbonization and acid etching. The nanozyme possessed a dispersive iron atom anchored in the Fe-N coordination structure as an active site to mimic the active center of tyrosine hydroxylase. The material showed spherical morphology, uniform size, high specific surface area, a mesoporous structure and easy magnetic separation. The structural properties could promote the density and accessibility of active sites and facilitate mass transport and electron transfer. The nanozyme exhibited high activity to catalyze the hydroxylation of tyrosine to L-DOPA as tyrosine hydroxylase in the presence of ascorbic acid and hydrogen peroxide. The titer of DOPA reached 1.2 mM. The nanozyme showed good reusability and comparable enzyme kinetics to tyrosine hydroxylase with a Michaelis-Menten constant of 2.3 mM. The major active species was the hydroxyl radical. Biomimetic simulation of tyrosine hydroxylase using a nanozyme with a fine structure provided a new route for the efficient production of L-DOPA.