Kinetics of α-MnOOH Nanoparticle Formation through Enzymatically Catalyzed Biomineralization inside Apoferritin

While biomineralization in apoferritin has effectively synthesized highly monodispersed nanoparticles of various metal oxides and hydroxides, the detailed kinetics and mechanisms of Mn(III) (hydr)oxide formation inside apoferritin cavities have not been reported. To address this knowledge gap, we first identified the phase of solid Mn(III) formed inside apoferritin cavities as α-MnOOH. To analyze the oxidation and nucleation mechanism of α-MnOOH inside apoferritin by quantifying oxidized Mn, we used a colorimetric method with leucoberbelin blue (LBB) solution. In this method, LBB disassembled apoferritin by inducing an acidic pH environment, and reduced α-MnOOH nanoparticles. The LBB-enabled kinetic analyses of α-MnOOH nanoparticle formation suggested that the orders of reaction with respect to Mn²⁺ and OH^- are 2 and 4, respectively, and α-MnOOH formation follows two-step pathways: First, soluble Mn²⁺ undergoes apoferritin-catalyzed oxidation at the ferroxidase dinuclear center, forming a Mn(III)-protein complex, P-[Mn₂O₂(OH)₂]. Second, the oxidized Mn(III) dissociates from the protein binding sites and is subsequently nucleated to form α-MnOOH nanoparticles in the apoferritin cavities. This study reveals key kinetics and mechanistic information on the Mn-apoferritin systems, and the results facilitate applications of apoferritin as a means of nanomaterial synthesis.