Atomically Site Synergistic Effects of Dual-Atom Nanozyme Enhances Peroxidase-like Properties.

Pursuing effective and generalized strategies for modulating the electronic structures of atomically dispersed nanozymes with remarkable catalytic performance is exceptionally attractive yet challenging. Herein, we developed a facile "formamide condensation and carbonization" strategy to fabricate a library of single-atom (M ₁ -NC; 6 types) and dual-atom (M ₁ /M ₂ -NC; 13 types) metal-nitrogen-carbon nanozymes (M = Fe, Co, Ni, Mn, Ru, Cu) to reveal peroxidase- (POD-) like activities. The Fe ₁ Co ₁ -NC dual-atom nanozyme with Fe ₁ -N ₄ /Co ₁ -N ₄ coordination displayed the highest POD-like activity. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the Co atom site synergistically affects the d-band center position of the Fe atom site and served as the second reaction center, which contributes to better POD-like activity. Finally, Fe ₁ Co ₁ NC was shown to be effective in inhibiting tumor growth both in vitro and in vivo , suggesting that diatomic synergy is an effective strategy for developing artificial nanozymes as novel nanocatalytic therapeutics.