One-pot and one-step synthesis of bioactive urease/ZnFe₂O₄ nanocomposites and their application in detection of urea.

This communication describes a novel environmentally friendly method to prepare bioactive urease/ZnFe2O4 nanocomposites through a one-pot and one-step process. The synthetic procedure is triggered through a biological mineralization process of decomposition of urea catalyzed by urease. During the growth of ZnFe2O4, urease molecules are immobilized by original ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles. As a consequence, the bioactive urease/ZnFe2O4 nanoparticle composites are assembled. This simple route is expected to endow the bioactive nanocomposites with new properties for various interesting fields.