Recent advances in the study of electrochemistry of redox proteins

Abstract

Redox proteins constitute a diverse class of proteins that facilitate the chemical and biological processes which are otherwise thermodynamically challenging. Efficient catalysis, diversity of biotransformation, potent redox centres and fast electron transport kinetics make these redox proteins an interesting target for electrochemical investigation for both theoretical and practical implications. The first and foremost requirement for electrochemical studies of redox proteins is to create an environment where they could interact with the electrodes either directly or via electron transport mediators. The last few years have seen a tremendous development in this field ranging from the increase in diversity of redox proteins that could possibly be studied electrochemically to their efficient immobilisation in a variety of matrices especially nanomatrices. Major advances have also been made in the area of characterisation of fabricated bioelectrodes by using different spectroscopic and microscopic techniques supplementing the electrochemical findings. This chapter will focus mainly on the aforementioned recent developments in the field of electrochemical studies of redox proteins and their applications for studies of redox mechanism or as biosensors or biofuel cells.