A composition including nano- or microspheres, and/or tubular nanostructures, each made of a plurality of aromatic dipeptides including end-capping modified aromatic dipeptides, non-modified aromatic dipeptides, or a combination thereof; and encapsulating an esterase or a functional fragment thereof; as well as methods of use. The plurality of aromatic dipeptides may include the end-capping modified aromatic dipeptides only.

Compositions comprise statistically random heteropolymers complexed with active proteins, and are formulated and used in stimuli-responsive materials and nanoreactors composed of proteins and synthetic materials.

Compositions comprise statistically random heteropolymers complexed with active proteins, and are formulated and used in stimuli-responsive materials and nanoreactors composed of proteins and synthetic materials.

Disclosed are mutated phosphotriesterase enzymes with improved stability and activity, as well as their use in particular for degrading organophosphorus compounds.

The present invention relates to enzymes capable of hydrolysing organophosphate (OP) molecules. In particular, the invention relates to variants of the OpdA enzyme from Agrobacterium that display improved activity when compared to the naturally occurring OpdA. The invention is also towards polypeptides that have organophosphate hydrolysing activity for the organophosphates chlorpyrifos methyl, diazinon and parathion ethyl.

In one embodiment, a hydrogel-enzyme construct for performing high temperature enzymatic reaction on paraoxon, and/or for performing enzymatic reaction on paraoxon following exposure to high temperature, includes a hydrogel having multiple layers of poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) and a plurality of dPTE2 enzyme molecules. Individual dPTE2 enzyme molecules are embedded between adjacent PMAA layers and are covalently bonded with respective individual PMAA layers. The hydrogel-enzyme construct is capable of performing enzymatic reaction on the paraoxon when the paraoxon is exposed to the hydrogel-enzyme construct under a temperature condition of up to above 99° C. and below 100° C. or when the paraoxon is exposed to the hydrogel-enzyme construct after the hydrogel-enzyme construct has been heated to a temperature condition of up to 550° C., where the enzymatic reaction on the paraoxon by individual dPTE2 molecules embedded within the hydrogel occurs at a residual activity of between 20% and 100%.

Variants of phosphotriesterase have been created that exhibit enhanced hydrolysis of V-type and G-type nerve agents over wild-type phosphotriesterase. V- and G-type nerve agents have an S.sub.P and R.sub.P enantiomer. The S.sub.P enantiomers are more toxic. V-type nerve agents are among the most toxic substances known. Variants of phosphotriesterase can prefer to hydrolyze one enantiomer of VX over the other enantiomer.

The present invention relates to organophosphorous hydrolase variants. The present invention also relates to polynucleotides encoding the variants; nucleic acid constructs, vectors, and host cells comprising the polynucleotides; and methods of using the variants.

Described herein are engineered cells, enzymes, methods of use, and bee bread incorporating engineered cells and enzymes as described herein. In certain aspects, described herein are a bacterium containing therein one or more stably-expressing expression vectors for exogenous expression of one or more recombinant carboxylesterase enzymes or oxalate decarboxylase enzymes, thereby providing the engineered cell an exogenous pathway for hydrolyzing ester bonds or removing a carboxyl group. Engineered cells and recombinant enzymes as described herein can be incorporated into bee bread to be fed to a member of the Apidae family of bees or of the Apis or Bombus genus. In additional aspects, such bacteria can also be selected and amplified from the milieu of the hive microorganisms and in some cases they can be molecularly bred to enhance their metabolic capabilities without genetic engineering.

There is provided a phospholipid composition which is a bilayer or micelle comprising at least one embedded protein-polymer surfactant conjugate comprising an anchor protein, wherein the anchor protein is a cationised protein or an anionised protein, the composition characterised in that the anchor protein is: a) an active enzyme; or b) is a protein which does not comprise a —CH.sub.2C(O)NCH.sub.3(CH.sub.2).sub.3NCH.sub.3).sub.2H.sup.+ linker covalently bonded to an amino acid side chain.