Comparison of three cross‐linking agents for imprinting diethylstilbestrol in solid‐phase extraction

Molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) has been heavily studied for years. However, most efforts focused on functional monomer and particular study of cross‐linking agents on imprinting effect and pore structure is rare. In this paper, diethylstilbestrol (DES) imprinted polymers cross‐linked by three types of agents and their imprinting effects in solid‐phase extraction (SPE) were discussed. Evolution of UV spectral and simulation of cross‐linking agents or monomer mixed with DES revealed that there was a particular interaction between divinylbenzene and DES. Clear imprinting effects towards DES showed for divinylbenzene made imprinted polymer (DM), with imprinting factors up to 16.02 (STD = 2.20), while the other two imprinted polymers showed limited effects with imprinting factors of 4.95 (STD = 0.45) and 1.63 (STD = 0.54). Specific surface areas, pore volumes, and pore size distributions of the particles also confirmed that DM showed distinguished structure, and the average pore size of it was just fit the size of DES and bisphenol A (BPA), while no pore was found in divinylbenzene made blank polymer. Other imprinted and non‐imprinted polymers showed no pore or big pores relatively. These results show that the cross‐linking monomer is not merely an inert component for the MIPs, it could play a positive role in promoting interactions with the template to afford molecular recognition in imprinting DES. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Nanomaterials and Nanocomposites: Atom‐Transfer Radical Polymerization with Acidic Monomers

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are artificial receptors which can be tailored to bind target molecules specifically. A new method, using photoinitiated atom‐transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) for their synthesis as monoliths, thin films and nanoparticles is described. The synthesis takes place at room temperature and is compatible with acidic monomers, two major limitations for the use of ATRP with MIPs. The method has been validated with MIPs specific for the drugs testosterone and S‐propranolol. This study considerably widens the range of functional monomers and thus molecular templates which can be used when MIPs are synthesized by ATRP, as well as the range of physical forms of these antibody mimics, in particular films and lithographic patterns, and their post‐functionalization from living chain‐ends.     

Surface imprinted polymers for oil denitrification with the combination of computational simulation and multi‐template molecular imprinting

Multi‐template molecular imprinting technique was employed for the theoretical study about industrial oil denitrification. Prior to the preparation of multi‐template molecularly imprinted polymers (MT‐MIPs), density functional theory was used for simulating the imprinted pre‐assembly systems composed of template (aniline, indole, or 3‐methylinndole) and monomer [methacrylic acid, acrylamide (AM), and 4‐vinylpyridine]. MT‐MIPs were synthesized as surface MIPs simply and successively by seeded emulsion polymerization or two‐stage precipitation polymerization. The experimental results were consistent with the simulative results, which demonstrated that AM was more suitable monomer together. In addition, seeded emulsion polymerization synthesized MT‐MIPs with better performance compared with two‐stage precipitation polymerization. The adsorption kinetics and adsorption isotherm of MT‐MIP prepared with AM using seeded emulsion polymerization were fitted with different models. The fitting results indicated that pseudo‐second‐order kinetics model and Freundlich isotherm model were suitable for describing the adsorption process of AM seeded emulsion polymerization. This study will provide a certain guidance and theoretical basis for introducing the combination of multi‐template molecular imprinting technique and computational simulation into the field of industrial denitrification. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Boronate Affinity–Molecularly Imprinted Biocompatible Probe: An Alternative for Specific Glucose Monitoring

A biocompatible probe for specific glucose recognition is based on photoinitiated boronate affinity–molecular imprinted polymers (BA‐MIPs). The unique pre‐self‐assembly between glucose and boronic acids creates glucose‐specific memory cavities in the BA‐MIPs coating. As a result, the binding constant toward glucose was enhanced by three orders of magnitude. The BA‐MIPs probe was applied to glucose determination in serum and urine and implanted into plant tissues for low‐destructive and long‐term in vivo continuous glucose monitoring.     

Synthesis of tetracycline‐imprinted polymer microspheres by reversible addition–fragmentation chain‐transfer precipitation polymerization using polyethylene glycol as a coporogen

Tetracycline (TC)‐imprinted microspheres have been synthesized by reversible addition–fragmentation chain‐transfer precipitation polymerization using PEG as a coporogen. In the synthesis, methacrylic acid and ethylene dimethacrylate were used as the functional monomer and cross‐linker, respectively. 2,2′‐Azobisisobutyronitrile was the initiator, and cumyl dithiobenzoate was the chain‐transfer reagent. Although monodispersed microspheres were obtained using acetonitrile as porogen, the particles cannot be used in the column extraction because of the high backpressure. To increase the porosity of the material, PEG was introduced as a coporogen. The influence of the molecular weight and concentration of PEG on the morphology, binding affinity, and porosity of the molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have been studied. The results demonstrated that PEG as a macroporogen increased the porosity of the polymers. Meanwhile, the column backpressure was reduced using the MIPs with higher porosity. The binding affinity of the MIPs was increased when a low concentration of PEG was employed, while it was decreased when the ratio of PEG 12 000/monomers was >0.8%. Under the optimized conditions, TC‐imprinted microspheres with good selectivity and size uniformity have been obtained, which facilitates its application in the column extraction for TC determinations.     

Molecularly Imprinted Electrochemical Sensor Based on Modified Reduced Graphene Oxide‐gold Nanoparticles‐polyaniline Nanocomposites Matrix for Dapsone Determination

This work was designed to develop an electrochemical sensor based on molecular imprinted polyaniline membranes onto reduced graphene oxide (RGO) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) modified glassy carbon (GC) electrode for dapsone (DDS) determination. The prepared RGO/AuNPs/PANI‐MIPs nanocomposite was characterized by Ultra‐Violet‐Visible (UV‐Vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR) and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) images. The feature of the imprinted electrode was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry (CV), differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) and impedance spectroscopy (IS). Throughout this study several analytical parameters, such as incubation time, pH value, concentration of monomer/template molecules and electro‐polymerization cycles were investigated. Under the optimized conditions, the experimental results showed best analytical performances for DDS detection with a sensitivity of 0.188 Ω/mol L^?1, a linear range from 1.0×10^?7 M to 1.0×10^?3 M and a detection limit of 6.8×10^?7 M. The bioanalytical sensor was applied to the determination of dapsone in real samples with high selectivity and recovery.     

Via protoporphyrin to the synthesis of levofloxacin‐imprinted polymer

A new molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) for levofloxacin was prepared by the combined use of methacrylic acid and protoporphyrin as functional monomers. The adsorption properties of resultant imprinted polymers were evaluated by equilibrium rebinding experiments. The highest binding capacity of levofloxacin achieved from the optimized imprinted polymer in acetonitrile was 246.26 µmol/g with an imprinting factor of 2.05. A ?uorescence quenching effect was observed when a protoporphyrin‐based imprinted polymer was incubated in the solutions of levofloxacin. The results indicated that the protoporphyrin‐based MIPs were able to create higher binding cavities for template compared with MIPs using only methacrylic acid as a functional monomer. It should be expected that the cooperative use of the protoporphyrin with supplemental different functional monomers may be an alternative to obtain MIP with the improvement of the selectivity. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A High Sensitivity Electrochemical Sensor Based on Fe3+‐Ion Molecularly Imprinted Film for the Detection of T‐2 Toxin

The excellent detection sensitivity in various matrices of T‐2 toxin (T‐2), which has cytotoxic and immunosuppressive effects in DNA and RNA synthesis, is a highly desirable characteristic. A sensitive molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor was constructed for the selective detection of T‐2. In this study, iron ions (Fe³⁺) were introduced to increase the chelation of the metal ions and templates for preparing molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). With the increased chelation of the metal ions and templates, the selectivity and sensitivity of the MIPs were effectively improved. The imprinted sensor was successfully employed to detect T‐2 in cereals and human serum samples.     

Determination of Parathion‐methyl in Vegetables by Fluorescent‐Labeled Molecular Imprinted Polymer

A novel sensor for the determination of parathion‐methyl based on couple grafting of functional molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs) was fabricated which is developed by anchoring the MIP layer on surfaces of silica particles embedded CdSe quantum dots by surface imprinting technology. The synthesized molecular imprinted silica nanospheres (CdSe@SiO₂@MIP) allow a high selectivity and sensitivity of parathion‐methyl via fluorescence intensity decreasing when the MIP material rebinding the parathion‐methyl molecule. Compared with the MIP fabricated in traditional method, the template of parathion‐methyl was easier to remove from the CdSe@SiO₂@MIP imprinted material. Under optimal conditions, the fluorescence intensity of parathion‐methyl at the imprinted sensor was detected by spectrofluorophotometer. The relative fluorescence intensity of CdSe@SiO₂@MIP decreased linearly with the increasing concentration of parathion‐methyl ranging from 0.013 mg·kg⁻¹ to 2.63 mg·kg⁻¹ with a detection limit (3δ) of 0.004 mg·kg⁻¹ (S/N=3), which is lower than the MIP in tradition. The imprinted film sensor was applied to detect parathion‐methyl in vegetable samples without the interference of other organophosphate pesticides and showed a prosperous application in the field of food safety.     

Dual‐templates molecularly imprinted monolithic columns for the evaluation of serotonin and histamine in CEC

To extend the application of molecularly imprinted polymers, the dual‐templates molecularly imprinted monolithic columns were developed in a capillary format. Two templates serotonin and histamine were simultaneously imprinted using two different functional monomers such as methacrylic acid (MAA) and methylenesuccinic acid (MSA) in a mixture of ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) as a cross‐linker and AIBN as polymerization initiator dissolved in DMF as porogen. The resulting molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs) were characterized based on their performance in the CEC separation of two imprinted templates. The optimization parameters such as pH, ACN composition, and concentration of the eluent were varied to achieve best resolution and efficiency for CEC separation of templates with each MIP column. It was found that the MIP monolith column fabricated using MSA offered better resolution and separation efficiency compared to column fabricated with MAA. This work utilized the dual‐templates imprinting approach successfully and broadens the scope of multi‐templates imprinting capabilities in capillary format in CEC application.     

Molecularly Imprinted Polymers: Compromise between Flexibility and Rigidity for Improving Capture of Template Analogues

New synthetic strategies for molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were developed to mimic the flexibility and mobility exhibited by receptor/enzyme binding pockets. The MIPs were prepared by bulk polymerization with quercetin as template molecule, acrylamide as functional monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as cross‐linker, and THF as porogen. The innovative grafting of specific oligoethylene glycol units onto the imprinted cavities allowed MIPs to be obtained that exhibit extended selectivity towards template analogues. This synthetic strategy gives promising perspectives for the design of molecular recognition of molecules based on a congruent pharmacophore, which should be of interest for drug development.     

Employment of Molecularly Imprinted Polymers to High‐Throughput Screen nNOS‐PSD‐95 Interruptions: Structure and Dynamics Investigations on Monomer–Template Complexation

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are employed to screen nNOS‐PSD‐95 (neuronal nitric oxide synthase post‐synaptic density protein‐95) interruptions. 5‐(3,5‐Dichloro‐2‐hydroxybenzylamino)‐2‐hydroxybenzoic acid (ZL006; a potential drug candidate for the treatment of stroke, depression, and pain) is employed as a template. Four kinds of functional monomers (2‐VP: 2‐vinylpyridine; 4‐VP: 4‐vinylpyridine; MMA: methyl methacrylate; and MAAM: methacrylamide) are designed, and their complexation with ZL006 in various solvents (methanol, acetonitrile, toluene, chloroform) is investigated by molecular dynamics simulations and quantum mechanics calculations. Both 4‐VP and MAAM have stronger interactions with ZL006 than those of 2‐VP and MMA. The appropriate ratio of monomer to template is 3:1. Intermolecular hydrogen bonds play a dominant role in monomer–template complexation. Ideal solvents are toluene and chloroform, and the solvation effect on monomer–template complexation is revealed. Both molecular modeling and adsorption experiments demonstrate that as‐synthesized ZL006‐MIP with 4‐VP as a monomer has better selectivity than that employing MAAM to screen for nNOS‐PSD‐95 interruptions.     

A Boiling‐Water‐Stable,Tunable White‐Emitting Metal–Organic Framework from Soft‐Imprint Synthesis

A new avenue for making porous frameworks has been developed by borrowing an idea from molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). In lieu of the small molecules commonly used as templates in MIPs, soft metal components, such as CuI, are used to orient the molecular linker and to leverage the formation of the network. Specifically, a linear dicarboxylate linker with thioether side groups reacted simultaneously with Ln³⁺ ions and CuI, leading to a bimetallic net featuring strong, chemically hard Eu³⁺–carboxylate links, as well as soft, thioether‐bound Cu₂I₂ clusters. The CuI block imparts water stability to the host; with the tunable luminescence from the lanthanide ions, this creates the first white‐emitting MOF that is stable in boiling water. The Cu₂I₂ block also readily reacts with H₂S, and enables sensitive colorimetric detection while the host net remains intact.     

A β‐Lactamase‐Imprinted Responsive Hydrogel for the Treatment of Antibiotic‐Resistant Bacteria

Antibiotics play important roles in infection treatment and prevention. However, the effectiveness of antibiotics is now threatened by the prevalence of drug‐resistant bacteria. Furthermore, antibiotic abuse and residues in the environment cause serious health issues. In this study, a stimuli‐responsive imprinted hydrogel was fabricated by using β‐lactamase produced by bacteria for deactivating antibiotics as the template molecule. The imprinted hydrogel could initially trap β‐lactamase excreted by drug‐resistant bacteria, thus making bacteria sensitive to antibiotics. After the bactericidal treatment, the “imprinted sites” on the hydrogel could be reversibly abolished with a temperature stimulus, which resulted in the reactivation of β‐lactamase to degrade antibiotic residues. We also present an example of the use of this antibacterial design to treat wound infection.     

Efficient one‐pot synthesis of water‐compatible and photoresponsive molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles by facile RAFT precipitation polymerization

A facile, general, and highly efficient one‐pot approach to obtain azobenzene (azo)‐containing molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) nanoparticles with photoresponsive template binding and release properties in aqueous media is described, which involves the combined use of hydrophilic macromolecular chain transfer agent‐mediated reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer precipitation polymerization and easily available water‐insoluble azo functional monomers. The resulting azo‐containing MIPs were characterized with dynamic laser scattering (DLS), SEM, FTIR, static contact angle and water dispersion studies, and equilibrium binding experiments. They have proven to be nanoparticles (their diameters being around 104–397 nm, as determined by DLS in methanol) with surface‐grafted hydrophilic polymer brushes and exhibit excellent pure water‐compatible template binding properties. Moreover, obvious photoregulated template binding behaviors were observed for such azo‐containing MIP nanoparticles, which led to their largely accelerated template release in the aqueous media under the UV light irradiation. Furthermore, the general applicability of the strategy was also demonstrated. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 1941–1952     

Preparation and Evaluation of Melamine Molecularly Imprinted Polymers by Thermal‐ and Photo‐initiation Methods

Melamine imprinted polymers (MIPs) have been prepared using identical polymer formulation by both thermal‐ and photo‐initiation method, respectively. Physical characterization of the polymers revealed that the different polymerization methods led to the slight differences in both polymer structures and performance by scanning electron microscope (SEM), infrared absorption (IR), and mercury analyzer (MA). Both MIPs were used as selective sorbents for the solid phase extraction (SPE) of melamine in milk powders, followed by the determination coupled to HPLC. The recoveries of melamine in spiked milk powders were obtained in the range of 92.4‐97.7% and 94.6‐99.7%, for both MIP_thermal and MIP_photo, respectively.     

Combined protein A imprinting and cryogelation for production of spherical affinity material

Cryogels have been demonstrated to be efficient when applied for protein isolation. Owing to their macroporous structure, cryogels can also be used for treating particle‐containing material, e.g. cell homogenates. Another challenging development in protein purification technology is the use of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). These MIPs are robust and can be used repeatedly. The paper presents a new technology that combine the formation of cryogel beads concomitantly with making imprints of a protein. Protein A was chosen as the print molecule which was also be the target in the purification step. The present paper describes a new method to produce protein‐imprinted cryogel beads. The protein‐imprinted material was characterized and the separation properties were evaluated with regard to both the target protein and whole cells with target protein exposed on the cell surface. The maximum protein A adsorption was 18.1 mg/g of wet cryogel beads. The selectivity coefficient of protein A‐imprinted cryogel beads for protein A was 5.44 and 12.56 times greater than for the Fc fragment of IgG and protein G, respectively.     

Molecular imprinting‐based micro‐stir bar sorptive extraction for specific analysis of Glibenclamide in herbal dietary supplements

A novel molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) coated micro‐stir bar (MSB) for Glibenclamide (GM) was developed. The MIPs, with GM as template molecular and methacrylic acid as functional monomer, were synthesized at the surface of the silylated MSB that was filled with magnetic core as substrate. Computational simulation was used for the optimal selection of functional monomers and porogen. The thickness of MIPs coating for MSB was about 10 μm, the adsorption and desorption time were about 40 and 20 min, respectively. The MIPs coated MSB possessed mechanical stability, high adsorption capacity, and good selectivity for GM. To achieve the optimum extraction performance, several parameters including extraction and desorption time, stirring rate, extraction and desorption solvent were investigated. A method for the determination of GM in herbal dietary supplements by MIPs coated MSB coupled with HPLC‐UV was established. The results exhibited good linear ranges of 10–6250 μg L^?1 with the low limit of detection of GM (3.05 μg L^?1) and the good recoveries (81.9–101.4%).     

Sugar acrylate‐based polymers as chiral molecularly imprintable hydrogels

New polymeric hydrogels with molecular imprinting properties were prepared from enzymically generated sugar acrylates. These so called MIPs (molecularly imprinted polymers) were used as chiral stationary phases for the resolution of the D ‐ and L ‐isomers of CBz–Asp in polar organic eluants. In the presence of 25% (mol/mol) methyl‐α‐D ‐glucopyranoside‐6‐acrylate [the balance consisting of N,N′‐methylenebisacrylamide (BIS)], a separation factor of nearly 2.5 is achieved. The effectiveness of separation was dependent on the nature of the solvent used as eluant and the sugar incorporated into the MIP. Molecular modeling revealed that hydrogen bonding between the sugar and CBz–Asp strongly influences chiral resolution. The broad array of sugars available and their ability to be modified selectively with the use of biocatalysts in both aqueous and organic media may provide a wide range of new imprinted materials for use in separations, sensing, and catalysis. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 1665–1671, 1999     

Picomolar Detection of Melamine Using Molecularly Imprinted Polymer‐Based Electrochemical Sensors Prepared by UV‐Graft Photopolymerization

Molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) films of melamine were prepared by photopolymerization of vinylic monomers on diazonium‐modified gold electrodes. The gold‐grafted MIPs are specific and selective for melamine in either organic or aqueous media. The interferent molecules cyromazine and cyanuric acid were not recognized by the MIPs. The limit of detection was as low as 1.75×10^?12 mol L^?1 at S/N=3. Efficiency of melamine rebinding is related to the solubility parameter of the organic solvent or pH and ionic strength of the aqueous medium. It is concluded that diazonium salts permit to design robust electrochemical MIP sensors.