The Polymer Society of Korea

Abstract

We present aqueous core hydrogel shell microcapsules for enhanced enzymatic cascade reactions, fabricated from triple emulsion templates using one step droplet microfluidics. The triple emulsion enables spatial separation of glucose oxidase(GOx) in the aqueous core and horseradish peroxidase(HRP) in the crosslinked hydrogel shell. This compartmentalized structure integrates free and immobilized enzymes to improve intermediate transport and reduce inhibitory interactions, resulting in faster cascade kinetics than conventional hydrogel systems. Structural parameters such as core shell volume ratio and capsule symmetry are tunable for optimization of catalytic performance. Incorporation of hydrophobic quinone mediators in internal oil droplets further enhances electron transfer and reaction efficiency. The microcapsules show high uniformity, recyclability, and long term stability, demonstrating their potential as platforms for multienzyme catalysis and microreactor design.