Molecularly imprinted polymers as a tool for separation in CEC

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are synthesized in the presence of a template which results in the formation of specific recognition cavities complementary to the template in shape and chemical functionality. One of the most successful application areas of MIPs is chromatographic sorbents, which are tailor-made synthetic polymers for a given analyte. However, low efficiency of MIP columns is often observed because of slow kinetics of the template. CEC-based MIPs are thought to improve efficiency of MIP-based separation due to the enhanced flow dynamics of CEC. Another attractive feature is the miniaturized format of CEC, so that fewer templates or monomers for the molecular imprinting are consumed, a characteristic desired for 'green chemistry'. The small dimensions of a capillary demand the development of novel polymer formats that can be applied to a miniaturized system. This review discusses the various formats, i.e., the micro- or nanoparticle, the coating and the monolith, for application in CEC as well as the use in MIP syntheses and characteristics.     

CEC separation of ofloxacin enantiomers using imprinted microparticles prepared in molecular crowding conditions

Molecular crowding is a new concept to obtain molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) with greater capacity and selectivity, which could shift the equilibrium of a print molecule reacting with functional monomers in the direction of complex formation side. In this work, molecular crowding agent was first applied to the preparation of MIPs microparticles by precipitation polymerization. A new system of molecular crowding surrounding was developed, composed of polystyrene and tetrahydrofuran, in the presence of the template (S)-ofloxacin. Partial filling capillary electrochromatography (CEC) was utilized to evaluate imprinting effect of the resulting microparticles by chiral separations of ofloxacin. Some important parameters in the preparation, i.e. template to monomer ratio, influence of cross-linking monomers and functional monomer composition on the CEC separation of MIP microparticles were investigated. Baseline separation of ofloxacin (R(s) =1.53) was obtained under optimized conditions and the highest theory plate of the later eluent (S)-ofloxacin was 5400. The textural and morphological parameters for imprinted particles, such as Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface areas, pore volumes and pore size distributions have also been determined. Compared to the MIP microparticle prepared by conventional precipitation polymerization, the (S)-ofloxacin-imprinted particles formed under molecular crowding conditions showed higher selectivity (α=1.09) and separation efficiency (<25 min) in the CEC mode.     

Molecularly Imprinted Polymers for Solid Phase Extraction

The combination of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) and solid phase extraction (SPE) is reviewed. MIPs, which have high selectivity and affinity for a predetermined molecule (template), have been used as sorbents for SPE to selectively isolate analytes from biological, pharmaceutical, and environmental samples. Solid phase extraction with molecularly imprinted polymers (MIP–SPE) is a promising technique which allows specific analytes to be selectively extracted from complex matrices. This survey summarizes the characteristics, development and application of MIP–SPE in recent years. Existed problems and the future direction of MIP–SPE are also discussed.     

Affinity screening by packed capillary high performance liquid chromatography using molecular imprinted sorbents. II. Covalent imprinted polymers

This study concentrates on the production of covalent molecular imprint polymers (MIPs) as highly selective sorbents for nortriptyline (NOR), a representative tricyclic antidepressant (TCA). The functionalized template contains a polymerizable 4-vinylphenyl carbamate moiety used to bind the template molecule to the polymer matrix. Polymerization with a cross-linker followed by hydrolytic cleavage of the labile carbamate functionality leaves an MIP with selective binding sites capable of binding template through hydrogen bonding interactions. Demonstrated chromatographically through a "selection index", these MIPs showed high selectivity for the template molecule (NOR) among a library of structurally similar compounds. The recognition was found to correlate with structural similarity to the template compound. A direct comparison between covalent and non-covalent molecular imprinting strategies reveals a great deal of improvement in the peak shape of the retained compound resulting from covalent imprinting (evidenced by peak asymmetry factors A.).     

An insight into molecularly imprinted polymers for capillary electrochromatography

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are actively being developed as a practical tool for affinity chromatographic supports. From the viewpoint of separation science, capillary electrochromatography (CEC) might be one of the more promising chromatographic techniques to be used in combination with the MIPs. However, up to the present, very little MIP work has involved CEC. This review gives a full overview of MIP including current trends in MIP, methods for the characterization of MIP, and methods for the preparation of MIP with particular emphasis on application of the resulting materials in CEC. To prepare MIPs with selectivity predetermined for a particular substance or group of structural analogues is an important factor for the development of a new format of CEC. From the fundamental research with the batch method, a better knowledge of imprint formation and imprint recognition will be helpful for expanding the application area of the combination of MIPs with CEC.     

分子印迹聚合物在毛细管电色谱拆分手性药物中的研究进展

手性药物通过与生物体内生物大分子之间的手性匹配与分子识别来发挥药理作用。两个对映体与体内手性环境相互作用的不同导致每个对映体表现出不同的药理活性、代谢过程、代谢速率及毒性等药代动力学特征。因此发展手性药物的拆分方法,对于手性药物的开发和生产过程的质量监控具有重要意义。分子印迹聚合物（MIPs）是以目标分子作为模板而制备的高分子聚合物,它具有特定的空间分子结构和官能团,对目标分子具有高度的特异性识别能力。基于该特点,MIPs非常适合于手性药物的拆分和纯化。毛细管电色谱（CEC）可同时基于毛细管电泳和液相色谱的分离机理对目标物进行分离,因此具有高分离效率和高选择性的特点。将MIPs材料作为CEC的固定相,可将这两种技术的优势结合,从而实现对手性药物的高效拆分。MIPs材料在1994年首次应用于CEC手性拆分,此后该研究领域开始获得关注和发展。MIPs材料主要通过4种模式在CEC中实现手性拆分,分别是作为开管柱、填充柱和整体柱的固定相以及分离介质中的准固定相。该综述以这4种模式作为分类基准,根据MIPs制备所需的材料和分离对象对其在CEC手性拆分中的应用进行了总结,揭示了MIPs在CEC手性拆分中的潜力,同时评述了这4种模式各自的优势与不足,并对将来MIPs在CEC手性拆分中的发展进行了展望。     

模板结构与分子印迹效果间关系的研究

以一些分子量和体积都较小的简单化合物作为模板分子,合成分子印迹聚合物 。通过总结43种化合物的分子印迹聚合物的色谱数据,来研究模板分子的分子量、 作用位点数目、分子刚性等因素与印迹效果的关系。根据免疫学中免疫原性的定义 ,我们提出“印迹原性”的概念,即,化合物能够产生印迹效应的性质称为印迹原 性;具有印迹原必的化合物称为印迹原;并讨论了具有较强选择性的印迹原的化学 基础。所得到的结论将有助于对分子印迹聚合物的识别机理的进一步理解,并且对 于根据模板分子性质预测MIP分子识别能力将具有一定的指导意义。     

Approaches to molecular imprinting based selectivity in capillary electrochromatography

The work done during the past decade in order to adapt molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) to the capillary format and subsequently use these highly selective matrices for capillary electrochromatography (CEC) are reviewed in this article. MIPs are prepared utilizing a templated polymer synthesis where the template addresses the selectivity of the resulting polymer. These polymers possess binding characteristics that are comparable to the biological antibodies. Due to the polyclonality of the binding sites in the MIP, the separation result in severe peak broadening and tailing when performed in the isocratic mode. This was seen early in the development of MIPs as selective stationary phases in liquid chromatography (LC). As a mean of decreasing these problems, much effort was put into adapting the MIP to fit in CEC systems, that offers an efficiency that is superior to that in LC. Aiming to increase the efficiency of the MIP-CEC systems, different MIP formats have been developed that can be divided into three conceptually different categories, i.e., the monolithic, the microparticle and the coating. The strive for MIP formats that can be used in small bore capillaries has led to the development of MIP formats applicable to miniaturized systems approaching the chip format. Although prepared in order to perform MIP-CEC mediated separations, these formats can be used in a broad range of applications were the characteristics of the MIP, e.g. stability, selectivity and cost efficiency, could offer an interesting solution to cover the needs.     

Recent advancement of carbon nanomaterials engrained molecular imprinted polymer for environmental matrix

Sample preparation techniques have always been considered as a complex issue in the analytical process. Most of the sample preparation techniques show a lack of selectivity. Molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) is a synthetic approach for sample preparation technique that has the ability of selective extractions. Generally, MIPs are selective sorbent, MIPs are capable of binding a molecule or its geometrical analogues. The imprinted polymers own particular voids exclusively framed for the aimed target analytes. These MIPs have been synthesized through a complex route of polymerization using a dedicated crosslinker, a template and function bound specific monomers (mainly interacting with the template). Despite having various pros like selectivity, morphological predictability, chemical & thermal stability, points alike binding site heterogeneity, partial template removal, and limited application pose a challenge. In this regard, a relatively newer carbon-based MIP method is explored as the molecular imprinting technique in various environmental samples. This paper describes the current scenario in the field of molecular-based imprinting technology using different carbon engrained materials and highlights the latest applications in this field and suggest proposals for the prospect in the area of the MIP.     

Preparation and Evaluation of Molecularly Imprinted Monolithic Column for Felodipine in Micro-liquid Chromatography

This study concentrated on the production of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) as highly selective sorbents for felodipine (FLD), a representive dihydropyridine calcium antagonists. Demonstrated chromatographically through a selection factor, these MIPs showed high selectivity for the template molecule among a group of structurally similar compounds. The recognition was found to correlate with structural similarity to the template compound.     

Molecularly imprinted polymers—potential and challenges in analytical chemistry

Among the variety of biomimetic recognition schemes utilizing supramolecular approaches molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have proven their potential as synthetic receptors in numerous applications ranging from liquid chromatography to assays and sensor technology. Their inherent advantages compared to biochemical/biological recognition systems include robustness, storage endurance and lower costs. However, until recently only few contributions throughout the relevant literature describe quantitative analytical applications of MIPs for practically relevant analyte molecules and real-world samples. Increased motivation to thoroughly evaluate the true potential of MIP technology is clearly attributed to the demands of modern analytical chemistry, which include enhanced sensitivity, selectivity and applicability of molecular recognition building blocks at decreasing costs. In particular, the areas of environmental monitoring, food and beverage analysis and industrial process surveillance require analytical tools capable of discriminating chemicals with high molecular specificity considering increasing numbers of complex environmental contaminants, pollution of raw products and rigorous quality control requested by legislation and consumer protection. Furthermore, efficient product improvement and development of new products requires precise qualitative and quantitative analytical methods. Finally, environmental, food and process safety control issues favor the application of on-line in situ analytical methods with high molecular selectivity. While biorecognition schemes frequently suffer from degrading bioactivity and long-term stability when applied in real-world sample environments, MIPs serving as synthetic antibodies have successfully been applied as stationary phase separation matrix (e.g. HPLC and SPE), recognition component in bioassays (e.g. ELISA) or biomimetic recognition layer in chemical sensor systems. Examples such as MIP-based selective analysis of flavones/flavonoids in wine, the determination of mycotoxins in beverages and analysis of organic contaminants in environment samples will elucidate the perspectives of this technology and will be contrasted with the challenges of rational MIP design providing control on binding site density, receptor capacity and selectivity.     

Affinity screening by packed capillary high-performance liquid chromatography using molecular imprinted sorbents. I. Demonstration of feasibility

Molecular imprint polymers (MIPs) are synthetic polymers capable of selectively binding a template molecule. In this work, the potential utility of MIP-based chromatographic sorbents for affinity screening of structurally similar compounds was investigated as alternatives to in vitro bioassays and biological targets bound to chromatographic supports. A group of structurally similar tricyclic antidepressant drugs and related compounds were used to simulate a combinatorial library. One of the antidepressants, nortriptyline (NOR), was selected as the template species. Using capillary HPLC columns packed with NOR-imprinted MIP particles, the simulated library was screened and the degree of selective interaction of each compound was determined. This correlated with each compound's affinity for the NOR binding site in the polymer. The results of the study revealed that library species which possess the major structural features of the template, specifically the ring structure and pendant secondary amine, were best "recognized" by the MIP, while the most structurally dissimilar compounds exhibited the least selective interaction. An investigation of the retention mechanism on these MIPs provided evidence that hydrogen bonding between the pendant amine group on the antidepressants and a methacrylic acid moiety on the polymer surface was critical in the molecular recognition process.     

Capturing molecules with templated materials--analysis and rational design of molecularly imprinted polymers

The creation of synthetic tailor-made receptors capable of recognizing desired molecular targets with high affinity and selectivity is a persistent long-term goal for researchers in the fields of chemical, biological, and pharmaceutical research. Compared to biomacromolecular receptors, these synthetic receptors promise simplified production and processing, less costs, and more robust receptor architectures. During recent decades, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are widely considered mimics of natural molecular receptors suitable for a diversity of applications ranging from biomimetic sensors, to separations and biocatalysis.A remaining challenge for the next generation of MIPs is the synthesis of deliberately designed and highly efficient receptor architectures suitable for recognizing biologically relevant molecules, for which natural receptors are either not prevalent, or difficult to isolate and utilize. Hence, this review discusses recent advances in synthetic receptor technology for biomolecules (e.g. drugs, amino acids, steroids, proteins, entire cells, etc.) via molecular imprinting techniques. Surface imprinting methods and epitope imprinting approaches have been introduced for protein recognition at imprinted surfaces. Imprinting techniques in aqueous solution or organic-water co-solvents have been introduced avoiding denaturation of biomolecules during MIP synthesis. In addition, improved bioreactivity of entire enzyme or active site mimics generated by molecular imprinting will be highlighted. Finally, the emerging importance of molecular modeling and molecular dynamics studies detailing the intermolecular interactions between the template species, the porogenic solvent molecules, and the involved monomer and cross-linker in the pre-polymerization solution will be addressed yielding a rational approach toward next-generation MIP technology.     

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     

分子印迹技术在毛细管电色谱中的应用

分子印迹技术是制备具有分子识别功能聚合物，即分子印迹聚合物（MIPs)的一种新技术；毛细管电色谱（CEC）是一个具有发展前途的色谱新技术。将分子印迹技术和毛细管电色谱两种新技术相结合，优势互补，具有极大的发展潜力。本文对分子印迹技术在毛细管电色谱中的应用，以及各类MIPs-CEC毛细管柱的制备方法进行了较为全面的综述，引用文献52篇。     

Photopolymerization and photostructuring of molecularly imprinted polymers for sensor applications—A review

Biosensors are already well established in modern analytical chemistry, and have become important tools for clinical diagnostics, environmental analysis, production monitoring, drug detection or screening. They are based on the specific molecular recognition of a target molecule by a biological receptor such as an antibody or an enzyme. Synthetic biomimetic receptors like molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have been shown to be a potential alternative to biomolecules as recognition element for biosensing. Produced by a templating process at the molecular level, MIPs are capable of recognizing and binding target molecules with similar specificity and selectivity to their natural analogues. One of the main challenges in MIP sensor development is the miniaturization of MIP structures and their interfacing with the transducer or with a microchip. Photostructuring appears thereby as one of the most suitable methods for patterning MIPs at the micro and nano scale, directly on the transducer surface. In the present review, a general overview on MIPs in biosensing applications is given, and the photopolymerization and photopatterning of MIPs are particularly described.     

Selective sample treatment using molecularly imprinted polymers

The molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are synthetic polymers possessing specific cavities designed for a target molecule. By a mechanism of molecular recognition, the MIPs are used as selective sorbents for the solid-phase extraction of target analytes from complex matrices. MIPs are often called synthetic antibodies in comparison with immuno-based sorbents; they offer some advantages including easy, cheap and rapid preparation and high thermal and chemical stability. This review describes the use of MIPs in solid-phase extraction with emphasis on their synthesis, the various parameters affecting the selectivity of the extraction, their potential to selectively extract analytes from complex aqueous samples or organic extracts, their on-line coupling with LC and their potential in miniaturized devices.     

Uniform molecularly imprinted microspheres and nanoparticles prepared by precipitation polymerization: the control of particle size suitable for different analytical applications

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are being increasingly used as selective adsorbents in different analytical applications. To satisfy the different application purposes, MIPs with well controlled physical forms in different size ranges are highly desirable. For examples, MIP nanoparticles are very suitable to be used to develop binding assays and for microfluidic separations, whereas MIP beads with diameter of 1.5-3 μm can be more appropriate to use in new analytical liquid chromatography systems. Previous studies have demonstrated that imprinted microspheres and nanoparticles can be synthesized using a simple precipitation polymerization method. Despite that the synthetic method is straightforward, the final particle size obtained has been difficult to adjust for a given template. In this work, we initiated to study new synthetic conditions to obtain MIP beads with controllable size in the nano- to micro-meter range, using racemic propranolol as a model template. Varying the composition of the cross-linking monomer allowed the particle size of the MIP beads to be altered in the range of 130 nm to 2.4 μm, whereas the favorable binding property of the imprinted beads remained intact. The chiral recognition sites were further characterized with equilibrium binding analysis using tritium-labeled (S)-propranolol as a tracer. In general, the imprinted sites displayed a high chiral selectivity: the apparent affinity of the (S)-imprinted sites for (S)-propranolol was 20 times that of for (R)-propranolol. Compared to previously reported irregular particles, the chiral selectivity of competitive radioligand binding assays developed from the present imprinted beads has been increased by six to seven folds in an optimized aqueous solvent.     

Optimization of the process parameters of synthesis of vinblastine imprinted polymer

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are tailor-made polymers with high selectivity for the template molecule. This selectivity arises from the synthetic procedure followed to prepare the MIP. In this work, the influence of process parameters on the preparation of vinblastine (VLB) imprinted polymers was presented. In the procedure of polymerization, VLB (0.1 mmol) was used as the template molecule and a commonly used initiator, azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN), was employed to initiate the reaction at 60 °C. The influence of the following parameters was investigated: the moles of functional monomer (MAA, 0.3-1.0 mmol), the moles of cross-linker (EDMA, 1.5-5.0 mmol) and the porogenic solvent (toluene or acetonitrile). A mathematical method of uniform design was applied to optimize these selected parameters in order to increase the selectivity of MIP for template molecule. The experimental data were analyzed to obtain the regression model and the optimal conditions were achieved by optimization with uniform design software. The MIP was synthesized under the optimal conditions that 1.0 mmol of MAA and 5.0 mmol of EDMA copolymerized in toluene in the presence of 0.1 mmol of VLB. After removal of the template molecule, the obtained MIP was then employed as the sorbents of solid-phase extraction (SPE) to separate VLB from Catharanthus roseus extract. The results showed that the polymer exhibited high affinity to the template molecule and could separate and enrich VLB from C. roseus extract effectively. The recovery of VLB on the optimal MIP was 89.00%, which agreed closely with the predicted recovery. Therefore it is possible to further improve the nature of the polymer by optimizing the polymerization parameters with the method of uniform design.