One example of bioinspiration is the ability of certain nanomaterials to mimic natural biological enzymes by catalysing processes such as oxidation. These catalytic reactions are highly effective, with reactions occurring rapidly even under mild conditions, and more importantly, with high selectivity. The high efficiency and selectivity are immensely desirable properties for sensing and monitoring applications. However, natural enzymes including proteins suffer from limitations such as low thermostability and narrow pH window, which will denature the enzymes and greatly reduce and inhibit their enzymatic activities. Low thermostability also places stringent requirements on the storage, transportation and handling of natural enzymes, which can be labour- and infrastructure-intensive for the users. Susceptible denaturation adds complexity to the interpretation of sensing and monitoring outputs, which may yield a false positive/negative outcome.

From this perspective, structurally designed nanomaterials address these limitations by offering high structural durability and stability, while maintaining the desirable catalytic activities. By incorporating the unique physicochemical properties and enzyme-like activities, these nanoparticles exhibit promising applications in different fields such as the biomedical sector (in vivo diagnostics/and therapeutics) and the environmental sector (detection and remediation of inorganic and organic pollutants).