TY - JOUR A1 - Gao, S. A1 - Hou, J. A1 - Deng, Z. A1 - Wang, T. A1 - Beyer, Sebastian A1 - de Oliveira Guilherme Buzanich, Ana A1 - Richardson, J. J. A1 - Rawal, A. A1 - Seidel, R. A1 - Zulkiļ¬‚i, M. Y. A1 - Li, W. A1 - Bennett, T. D. A1 - Cheetham, A. K. A1 - Liang, K. T1 - Improving the Acidic Stability of Zeolitic Imidazolate Frameworks by Biofunctional Molecules N2 - Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) have been widely investigated for their use in separation, gas adsorption, catalysis, and biotechnology. Their practical applications, however, can be hampered by their structural instability in humid acidic conditions. Here, guided by density functional theory calculations, we demonstrate that the acidic stability of two polymorphic ZIFs (i.e., ZIF-8 and ZIF-L) can be enhanced by the incorporation of functional groups on polypeptides or DNA. A range of complementary synchrotron investigations into the local chemical structure and bonding environment suggest that the enhanced acidic stability arises from the newly established coordinative interactions between the Zn centers and the inserted carboxylate (for polypeptides) or phosphate (for DNA) groups, both of which have lower pKas than the imidazolate ligand. With functional biomolecular homologs (i.e., enzymes), we demonstrate a symbiotic stability reinforcement effect, i.e., the encapsulated biomolecules stabilize the ZIF matrix while the ZIF exoskeleton protects the enzyme from denaturation. KW - Zeolitic Imidazolate Frameworks KW - Biofunctional Molecules KW - X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy PY - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chempr.2019.03.025 VL - 5 IS - 6 SP - 1597 EP - 1608 PB - Elsevier Inc. AN - OPUS4-48702 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -