Liquid crystal polysiloxane networks as materials for molecular imprinting technology: memory of the mesomorphic organization

A novel approach to the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers via non-covalent linkages has been studied. It relies on the use of thermotropic side group liquid crystal polymer networks. The polysiloxane networks obtained after extraction of the template preserved the mesomorphic organization set up in the presence of the guest molecule. A first batch rebinding analysis was performed: this study revealed that the imprinted polymer has a much greater affinity for the template molecule than has the non-imprinted polymer, and a significant selectivity.