Introduction of a planar defect in a molecularly imprinted photonic crystal sensor for the detection of bisphenol A

This paper reports the preparation of a molecularly imprinted inverse opal hydrogel containing a 2D defect layer, by combining the Langmuir-Blodgett technique and the photonic crystal template method. By coupling the exceptional characteristics of molecularly imprinted polymers, sensitive to the presence of a target molecule, and those of photonic crystals in a single device, we could obtain a defect-embedded imprinted photonic polymer consisting in a three-dimensional, highly-ordered and interconnected macroporous array, where nanocavities complementary to analytes in shape and binding sites are distributed. As a proof of concept, we prepared a three-dimensional macroporous array of poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) containing molecular imprints of bisphenol A (BPA) and a planar defect layer consisting in macropores of different size. The optical properties of the resulting inverse opal were investigated using reflection spectroscopy. The defect layer was shown to enhance the sensitivity of the photonic crystal material, opening new possibilities towards the development smart optical sensing devices.     

Preparation of Surface Molecularly Imprinted Poly(dopamine) Film for 4-Hydroxybenzoic Acid (4-BA) Recognition by One-Step Method

In this paper, we present a one-step aqueous self-polymerization strategy to prepare surface molecularly imprinted poly(dopamine) (PDA) film. The method is simple and convenient compared with the “template-guided” surface molecularly imprinted synthesis method and the layer-by-layer self-assembly and the surface-grafted molecularly imprinted synthesis methods. The molecularly imprinted PDA films could selectively bind the template molecules (4-Hydroxybenzoic acid as a model), and bisphenol A (BPA) imprinted PDA films were also investigated. Meanwhile, the 2-dimension imprinted film material was used very conveniently.     

Highly selective stir bar coated with dummy molecularly imprinted polymers for trace analysis of bisphenol A in milk

A water compatible molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) coated stir bar for bisphenol A(BPA) was prepared with 3,3',5,5'-tetrabromobisphenol A as the dummy template molecule in this study. The dummy molecularly imprinted polymers coated stir bar (DMIPs-SB) showed better selectivity than the bars coated with polydimethylsiloxane or non-imprinted polymers when used to extract BPA and its three analogues. The saturated adsorption amount of the DMIPs coating was 3.0 times over that of the non-imprinted polymers coating. To achieve the optimum extraction performance, several parameters, including extraction and desorption time, pH value, adsorption temperature and stirring speed were investigated. The high-performance liquid chromatography combined with the DMIPs-SB was employed in the analysis of BPA in aqueous solution. The linear range of BPA concentration in aqueous medium was 0.0228-2.28 ng/mL with correlation coefficient of 0.9994 and the detection limit was about 6.84 × 10(-3) ng/mL based on three times ratio of signal to noise. This method was directly applied to the determination of trace BPA in milk with satisfactory results.     

Synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers via ring-opening metathesis polymerization for solid-phase extraction of bisphenol A

The use of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) prepared by ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) for bisphenol A (BPA) was reported in this article. The resulting MIPs have high imprinting and adsorption capacities, and can be used for separation and determination of BPA in environmental water samples. The successful application of ROMP in the molecular imprinting field is described here. For the first time, two cross-linkers (dicyclopentadiene and 2,5-norbornadiene) and two Grubbs catalysts (first and second generation) were investigated to compare their effects on the binding performance of MIPs. The ROMP technique is able to create the imprinted polymers within 1 h under mild conditions. Furthermore, it can provide MIPs with obvious imprinting effects towards the template, very fast template rebinding kinetics, high binding capacity and appreciable selectivity over structurally related compounds. The adsorption process for MIPs in this study can be completed within 45 min, which is much faster than that of bulk MIPs synthesized by traditional free-radical polymerization. The resulting imprinting polymer was evaluated for its use as a sorbent support in an off-line solid-phase extraction approach to recover BPA from diluted aqueous samples. The optimized extraction protocol resulted in a reliable MISPE method suitable for selective extraction and preconcentration of BPA from tap water, human urine and liquid milk samples. This article demonstrates the practical feasibility of the MIPs prepared via ROMP as solid-phase extraction materials.     

Inverse opal photonic crystal of chalcogenide glass by solution processing

Chalcogenide opal and inverse opal photonic crystals were successfully fabricated by low-cost and low-temperature solution-based process, which is well developed in polymer films processing. Highly ordered silica colloidal crystal films were successfully infilled with nano-colloidal solution of the high refractive index As(30)S(70) chalcogenide glass by using spin-coating method. The silica/As-S opal film was etched in HF acid to dissolve the silica opal template and fabricate the inverse opal As-S photonic crystal. Both, the infilled silica/As-S opal film (Δn ~ 0.84 near λ=770 nm) and the inverse opal As-S photonic structure (Δn ~ 1.26 near λ=660 nm) had significantly enhanced reflectivity values and wider photonic bandgaps in comparison with the silica opal film template (Δn ~ 0.434 near λ=600 nm). The key aspects of opal film preparation by spin-coating of nano-colloidal chalcogenide glass solution are discussed. The solution fabricated "inorganic polymer" opal and the inverse opal structures exceed photonic properties of silica or any organic polymer opal film. The fabricated photonic structures are proposed for designing novel flexible colloidal crystal laser devices, photonic waveguides and chemical sensors.     

Molecularly imprinted polymers for 5-fluorouracil release in biological fluids

The aim of this work was to investigate the possibility of employing Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIPs) as a controlled release device for 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in biological fluids, especially gastrointestinal ones, compared to Non Imprinted Polymers (NIPs). MIPs were synthesized using methacrylic acid (MAA) as functional monomer and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) as crosslinking agent. The capacity of the polymer to recognize and to bind the template selectively in both organic and aqueous media was evaluated. An in vitro release study was performed both in gastrointestinal and in plasma simulating fluids. The imprinted polymers bound much more 5-Fu than the corresponding non-imprinted ones and showed a controlled/sustained drug release, with MIPs release rate being indeed much more sustained than that obtained from NIPs. These polymers represent a potential valid system for drug delivery and this study indicates that the selective binding characteristic of molecularly imprinted polymers is promising for the preparation of novel controlled release drug dosage form.     

核壳结构的萘夫西林磁性分子印迹聚合物微球的制备及性能

以表面修饰双键的Fe₃O₄@SiO₂纳米颗粒为基体,以萘夫西林(nafcillin)为模板,甲基丙烯酸(MAA)为单体,乙二醇二甲基丙烯酸酯(EGDMA)为交联剂,偶氮二异丁腈(AIBN)为引发剂,采用三步升温聚合法合成了核壳结构的萘夫西林磁性分子印迹聚合物。采用傅里叶变换红外光谱仪(FT-IR)、透射电子显微镜(TEM)、X射线衍射仪(XRD)和振动样品磁强计(VSM)对制备的印迹聚合物微球进行了表征,得到的磁性印迹聚合物微球的粒径在320 nm左右,大小均匀,分散性较好,可以在外加磁场下与溶剂实现快速分离。对磁性印迹和非印迹聚合物进行了吸附性能研究,结果表明该印迹聚合物微球对模板分子具有很高的吸附容量(50.7 mg/g),特异性识别性能良好(印迹因子为2.46),有望应用于实际样品中萘夫西林残留量的富集分析。     

A molecularly imprinted photonic polymer sensor with high selectivity for tetracyclines analysis in food

A molecularly imprinted photonic polymer (MIPP) sensor for respective detection of tetracycline, oxytetracycline and chlortetracycline is developed based on the combination of a colloidal crystal templating method and a molecular imprinting technique. Colloidal crystal templates are prepared from monodisperse polystyrene colloids. The molecularly imprinted polymer, which is embodied in the colloidal crystal templates, is synthesized with acrylic acid and acrylamide as monomers, N,N'-methylene bisacrylamide as a cross-linker and tetracyclines (TCs) as imprinting template molecules. After removal of the colloidal crystal template and the molecularly imprinted template, the resulted MIPP consists of a three-dimensional, highly ordered and interconnected macroporous array with a thin hydrogel wall, where nanocavities complementary to analytes in shape and binding sites are distributed. The response of MIPP to TCs stimulants in aqueous solution is detected through a readable Bragg diffraction red-shift, which is due to the lattice change of MIPP structures responding to their rebinding to the target TCs molecules. A linear relationship was found between the Δλ and the concentration of TCs in the range from 0.04 μM to 0.24 μM. With this sensory system, direct and selective detection of TCs has been achieved without using label techniques and expensive instruments. The developed method has been applied successfully to detect tetracycline in milk and honey samples.     

Characterisation and application of molecularly imprinted polymers for group-selective recognition of antibiotics in food samples

Group-selective molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for amphenicol antibiotics, including chloramphenicol (CAP), thiamphenicol (TAP), florfenicol (FF), and florfenicol amine (FFA), were developed for the first time using TAP as the template molecule. The characteristics of the obtained MIPs were systematically evaluated by chromatographic methods and frontal analysis, demonstrating that the MIPs had excellent chromatographic behaviors, good selectivity, and high-binding capability. A molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) procedure was developed based on the chromatography results. The MIPs exhibited better group selectivity for CAP, TAP, FF, and FFA than non-imprinted polymers (NIPs) under the optimized washing conditions of 10% acetonitrile in PBS buffer (25 mmol L(-1), pH = 5). Compared with conventional solid-phase extraction, significant recoveries ranging from 92.4% to 98.8% with lower relative standard deviation values in the range of 3.2-7.3% for both intraday- and interday-assays were obtained. The limits of detection (LODs) of MISPE for CAP, TAP, FF, and FFA in shrimp were found to be 0.016, 0.093, 0.102, and 0.029 μg kg(-1), respectively. The results acquired in this study contribute to the strategic development of MIPs and MISPE methods for the multi-residual recognition of antibiotics from complex matrices.     

Synthesis and evaluation of molecularly imprinted core-shell carbon nanotubes for the determination of triclosan in environmental water samples

Synthetic core-shell molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were prepared for the extraction of trace triclosan in environmental water samples. The synthesis process combined a surface molecular imprinting technique with a sol-gel process based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) coated with silica. The morphology and structure of the products were characterized by transmission electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The adsorption properties of the polymers were demonstrated by equilibrium rebinding experiments and Scatchard analysis. The prepared imprinted materials exhibited fast kinetics, high capacity and favorable selectivity. The process of synthesis was quite simple and different batches of MIPs and non-imprinted polymers (NIPs) showed good reproducibility in the template binding. The feasibility of determination of triclosan from real samples was testified using spiked river and lake water samples. The recoveries of river water and lake water samples were ranged from 92.1 to 95.3% and 90.7 to 93.6%, respectively, when the environmental water samples were spiked with 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5 μg L(-1) of TCS. In addition, the reusability of MIPs and NIPs without any deterioration in capacity was demonstrated for at least 10 repeated cycles.     

Application of multivariate analysis to the screening of molecularly imprinted polymers for bisphenol A

A key issue in the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) is the identification and optimisation of the main factors that affect the material structure and its molecular recognition properties. This paper describes the application of an experimental design and multivariate analysis method for the synthesis of bisphenol A (BPA)-selective MIPs. Six factors with a large impact on the MIP synthesis and its analytical performance have been optimised: the amount of template, the type and the percentage of functional and cross-linking monomers, the polymerisation method (i.e. thermal or UV initiation) and the porogenic solvent. The polymers have been prepared in small-scale (mini-MIPs) and, after careful removal of the template, their BPA rebinding capacity has been evaluated and related to the MIP composition. Among the two functional monomers tested, namely 4-vinylpyridine (4-vpy) and methacrylic acid (MAA), the former rendered the best selectivity for BPA analysis. The partial least squares (PLS) models revealed that the photoinitiated polymers with a 1:1 ratio of 4-vinylpyridine to cross-linker (EDMA or TRIM) yield the highest specific binding. Such procedure is time and cost effective and can be used as a general tool in the preparation of MIPs for different analytes.     

Novel surface modified molecularly imprinted polymer focused on the removal of interference in environmental water samples for chromatographic determination

Uniformly sized molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for bisphenol A (BPA) with surface modification and immobilized intervals of functional monomers afforded by utilizing 4,4'-methylenebisphenol as a pseudo component have been prepared. MIPs for BPA were prepared using 4-vinyl pyridine immobilized in the most effective interval and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as a functional monomer and cross-linking agent, respectively. Prepared MIPs showed significant selectivity for BPA retention and removal performance for interference in actual samples as the HPLC stationary phase compared to those of ordinary MIPs. These MIPs were employed as pretreatment media of column switching HPLC and the HPLC system provided a detection limit of 0.36 ppt when electrochemical detection was used. Actual samples, including Suwannee River natural organic matter (NOM), were applied and BPA was detected in the NOM even if widely used UV detection was employed.     

Probing cavity versus surface preference of fluorescent template molecules in molecularly imprinted polystyrene microspheres

Functional polystyrene (PS) crosslinked microbeads were developed by dispersion polymerization as fluorescent molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) having cavities with specific recognition sites. The functional azobenzene molecule modified with pyridine was self‐assembled with Pyrenebutyric acid (template molecules), and introduced during the second stage of dispersion polymerization of polystyrene. The template molecule was removed from MIP by Soxhlet using acetonitrile as solvent. Non imprinted polymer (NIP) having no template was also synthesized for comparative study. Fluorescence spectroscopy could be used as a tool to derive insight into the location of the template molecules on the MIP or NIP. The template molecules were adsorbed on the surface of the NIPs during binding studies, which was evidenced from the pyrene excimeric emission observed at 440 nm. The template binding efficiency of the NIPs were much lower compared to MIPs. Pyrene emission from MIP upon rebinding showed typical monomeric emission in the 375–395 nm range, confirming its location in isolated cavities. In rebinding studies of the template molecules, the MIPs selectively took up the template for which the cavity was designed, which demonstrated their selectivity towards template molecules. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2017 , 55, 1558–1565     

Molecularly imprinted photonic polymer as an optical sensor to detect chloramphenicol

An inverse opal photonic crystal sensor that could specifically detect chloramphenicol (CAP) in a label-free way was introduced in the current research. A colloidal crystal template was first prepared from monodisperse SiO(2) nanospheres. Precursors with different compositions were infused into the void spaces of the respective templates and aggregated. The template and the imprinted CAP were removed, and a molecularly imprinted photonic polymer (MIPP) with numerous nanocavities derived from the SiO(2) template was prepared. The MIPP could specifically recognize the target CAP. The results showed that the embedding and transporting of CAP could change the reflection peak intensity of the MIPP. The MIPP exhibited good responsiveness, with a detection range from 1 ng mL(-1) to 1 μg mL(-1) of CAP. The MIPP response time was 8 min upon its addition to CAP at a concentration of 10 ng mL(-1), which is shorter than that of other methods. After repeated use, the MIPP maintained a good performance and detection capacity. Thus, the results prove that the novel sensor could specifically detect CAP in a simple, time-saving, and low-cost manner.     

分子印迹磁性固相萃取/液相色谱法检测奶制品中的双酚A

以双酚A(BPA)为模板分子,磁性二氧化硅(Fe_3O_4@SiO_2)为载体,4-乙烯基吡啶(4-VP)为功能单体,采用表面分子印迹技术制备了双酚A磁性分子印迹聚合物微球(Fe_3O_4@SiO_2-MIPs)。通过红外光谱、透射电镜等对Fe_3O_4@SiO_2-MIPs进行了结构和形貌的表征。将制得的Fe_3O_4@SiO_2-MIPs作为磁性吸附剂,分离富集奶制品中的BPA,建立了分子印迹磁性固相萃取/液相色谱法测定奶制品中BPA的新方法。结果表明,在优化条件下,Fe_3O_4@SiO_2-MIPs对BPA具有良好的选择性,最大吸附容量达13.50 mg/g,在0.05~5.0 mmol/L浓度范围内有良好的线性关系(r2=0.993 4),方法检出限为0.037μg/L,样品加标回收率为86.2%~93.1%,相对标准偏差为2.9%~3.8%。该方法高效快速,选择性好,可用于牛奶样品中痕量BPA的检测。     

Imprinted Photonic Hydrogels for the Size‐ and Shell‐Selective Recognition of Nanoparticles

Sensors based on responsive photonic hydrogels have recently attracted considerable attention for visual medical diagnostics, pharmaceutical bioassays, and environmental monitoring. However, the use of these promising materials for the detection of nanoparticles (NPs) has never been explored so far, although the sensing of nanoobjects is a rapidly evolving area of research. To address this issue, we have combined the concepts of inverse‐opal hydrogels and nanoparticle‐imprinted polymers. In this way, we could obtain a NP‐imprinted photonic hydrogel consisting of a three‐dimensional, highly ordered poly(methacrylic acid) macroporous array, in which nanocavities complementary to the target NPs, in this case colloidal quantum dots, are distributed. This novel type of NP‐imprinted photonic hydrogel sensor was shown to display high sensitivity and selectivity, thus opening new prospects for the development of equipment‐free and cost‐efficient sensing devices for NPs.     

Synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymer as a sorbent for solid phase extraction of bovine albumin from whey,milk, urine and serum

This study describes the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) using bovine albumin as a template, 2-VP as a functional monomer, EGDMA as a cross-linker and AIBN as an initiator by radical polymerization. Non-imprinted polymers (NIPs) were prepared and treated with the same method, but in the absence of bovine albumin. The synthesized MIPs and NIPs were characterized on the basis of FTIR, TGA and DTA. An adsorption process (solid phase extraction, SPE) for the removal of bovine albumin using the fabricated MIPs and NIPs was evaluated under various conditions. Effective parameters on bovine albumin retention for example, pH, flow rate, nature of the eluent, the ionic strength, selectivity coefficient, and retention capacity were studied. Competition test implicates that the MIP adsorbents have the strongest specific retention and enrichment for bovine albumin respect to NIPs. The maximum adsorption of bovine albumin by the fabricated MIPs was 24 mg/g. The calibration curves were linear in the range of 20–200 mg/L of bovine albumin. The limit of detection (LOD), the calibration sensitivity, the relative standard deviation (RSD) and preconcentration factor under optimal experimental conditions were 2.44 and 25, respectively. The extraction of bovine albumin from blood serum, urine, whey and milk samples had a selectivity and enrichment property. In the actual experiment for real samples, recovery of ~ 80% was achieved.     

Selective solid-phase extraction of bisphenol A using molecularly imprinted polymers and its application to biological and environmental samples

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were prepared using bisphenol A (BPA) as a template by precipitation polymerization. The polymer that had the highest binding selectivity and ability was used as solid-phase extraction (SPE) sorbents for direct extraction of BPA from different biological and environmental samples (human serum, pig urine, tap water and shrimp). The extraction protocol was optimized and the optimum conditions were as follows: conditioning with 5 mL methanol–acetic acid (3:1), 5 mL methanol, 5 mL acetonitrile and 5 mL water, respectively, loading with 5 mL aqueous samples, washing with 1 mL acetonitrile, and eluting with 3 mL methanol. MIPs can selectively recognize, effectively trap and preconcentrate BPA over a concentration range of 2–20 μM. Recoveries ranged from 94.03 to 105.3 %, with a relative standard deviation lower than 7.9 %. Under the optimal condition, molecularly imprinted SPE recoveries of spiked human serum, pig urine, tap water and shrimp were 65.80, 82.32, 76.00 and 75.97 %, respectively, when aqueous samples were applied directly. Compared with C18 SPE, a better baseline, better high-performance liquid chromatography separation efficiency and higher recoveries were achieved after molecularly imprinted SPE.      

Effect of the size of molecularly imprinted polymers sensing materials on piezoelectric quartz crystal sensor performance.

The effect of the size of the molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) on the piezoelectric quartz crystal (PQC) sensor performance was investigated. Erythromycin imprinted polymers microspheres with different sizes were synthesized by precipitation polymerization. The size of the MIPs was characterized by using transmission electron microscope (TEM) analysis. Being coated with a poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membrane containing MIPs, the proposed PQC sensor can selectively adsorb the template molecule. Investigation of the performance of sensors modified with different sizes of MIPs showed that PQC sensor modified with smaller size MIPs exhibited better performance and excellent selectivity. Other influencing factors on sensor functions modified with different sizes MIPs were also investigated.     

乙基膦酸分子印迹光子晶体传感器的研究

本研究结合光子晶体与分子印迹技术,制备了一种新颖有机磷毒剂光学传感器——三维分子印迹光子晶体(3D-MIPCs)凝胶膜.采用聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯胶体小球为光子晶体自组装阵列模板,以甲基丙烯酸羟乙酯和N-异丙基丙烯酰胺为混合单体,乙二醇二甲基丙烯酸酯和N,N-亚甲基双丙烯酰胺为混合交联剂,正辛醇和乙腈混合溶液为溶剂,光聚得到印迹聚合物.该材料对乙基膦酸响应速度快、选择性高,其对目标分子的识别作用会导致衍射光谱图的改变.随着在EPA浓度从0.5 mmol/L增加到1.5 mmol/L的过程中,反射峰强度逐渐降低,降幅达到10％,并伴随明显红移.该材料为乙基膦酸检测提供了新的思路,在神经毒剂检测及监控等领域有应用前景.