Deciphering the Catalytic Mechanism of Oxidoreductase‐Like Nanozymes Along the Reaction Pathway: Activity, Specificity and Sustainability

ABSTRACT

As the most applied nanozymes, the catalytic mechanism of oxidoreductase (OR)‐like nanomaterials has received widespread attention over the past decades. Despite of the large efforts, their catalytic mechanism is currently abundant but still complicated, which restricts further development. Rather than the common mechanistic discussion simply classified by material type or regulatory method, this review deepens the analysis on the catalytic mechanism of OR‐like nanozymes through a detailed overview along their reaction pathways. The electron transfer sequence, substrate adsorption, reactive intermediate generation/transformation, and product desorption in the catalytic pathway of OR‐like nanozymes are explicitly investigated and compared with their natural counterparts. The root causes that determine their catalytic activity, specificity, and sustainability are highlighted. Moreover, the superiority of the catalytic mechanism‐tailored OR‐like nanozymes in various applications is highlighted. Finally, the future prospects of catalytic mechanism research are outlined, providing inspiration for the catalytic pathway clarification, activity improvement, specificity exploration, mechanism study at actual scenarios, and machine learning integration. It is anticipated that this review will promote a thorough and consistent understanding on the catalytic mechanism of OR‐like nanozymes.