Enantiospecific profiling of D-amino acid for gastric cancer diagnosis by using a biocatalytic MHOF nanoreactor

The dynamic variation of D-amino acids (D-AAs) in human saliva has great potential as the indicator for individual physiological states and disease progression; however, enantiospecific profiling of D-AAs is a great challenge. In this work, a nanoreactor based on mesoporous hydrogen-bonded organic framework (MHOF) has been fabricated for the enantiospecific profiling of D-AAs. The nanoreactor is prepared by using MHOFs as the scaffold to organize the biocatalytic cascade of D-AA oxidase (DAAO) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP). In the meanwhile, the large, stable, and robust transport channels of MHOFs allow the unimpeded transport of the involved biocatalytic substrates. Once D-AA substrates efficiently transport into MHOFs, the chromogenic reactions of 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) and H 2 O 2 can be activated. So, using this MHOF nanoreactor, enantiospecific and visual detection of D-AAs can be achieved. Moreover, the stable nanoreactor can be operated in complex solution and utilized for the profiling of D-AA levels in saliva samples collected from gastric cancer patients, suggesting that D-AAs may be a powerful fingerprint for the diagnosis of gastric cancer. Therefore, the fabricated MHOF-based nanoreactor may provide an emerging tool for the enantiospecific profiling of D-AAs and supports the D-AA fingerprint as the indicator of gastric cancer diagnosis.