Enzymatic membranes for the selective transport of neutral molecules by electrophoresis.

The active and selective transport of glucose and glycerol was carried out using electrophoresis and artificial enzymatic membranes. These positively charged composite membranes carry, on the face adjacent to the donor compartment of an electrophoresis module, a specific kinase (hexokinase or glycerokinase) and, on the opposite face, an alkaline phosphatase (ALP). Phosphorylation of the neutral substrate (glucose or glycerol) on the donor side by the kinase generates a negatively charged phosphorylated substrate, whose transmembrane migration is promoted by an electric field and by the membrane's positive charge. Dephosphorylation of the phosphorylated substrate by ALP on the opposite face regenerates the neutral substrate, which accumulates in the receiver compartment of the electrophoresis module. Using an electrophoresis module specifically designed for this study, our experiments were carried out enabling glucose and glycerol to be concentrated approximately eight- and twelve-fold, respectively, in 8 h.