US Patent 7951744 - Nano-reagents with cooperative catalysis

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7951744.html

Pharmaceutical and chemical processing often requires artificial catalysts that can mimic biological functions and which can be reused. This patent from Southern Illinois University Carbondale includes some basic claims to a nanoscale catalyst providing such biomimetic capability. Claim 1 reads:

1. A nanocatalyst comprising at least one individual amino acid attached to a nanoparticle, wherein each individual amino acid is independently attached to the nanoparticle and has a reactive side chain that catalyzes a chemical reaction.