Novel biphasic separations utilising highly selective molecularly imprinted polymers as biorecognition solvent...

Area of Science:

• Polymer Chemistry
• Analytical Chemistry
• Materials Science

Background:

• Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) offer robust alternatives to natural receptors in biosensing.
• Conventional MIPs exhibit poor performance in aqueous environments.
• A novel biphasic solvent system using MIPs as a solid extraction phase addresses this limitation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and demonstrate a novel biphasic solvent system utilizing MIPs for enhanced solvent extraction.
• To evaluate the efficiency and selectivity of MIP-based extraction in aqueous sample media.
• To explore the potential of this system for novel biosensing and separation procedures.

Main Methods:

• Preparation of monodisperse propranolol-imprinted polymer (MIP) microspheres via precipitation polymerization.
• Assessment of polymer affinity for (R,S)-propranolol using established techniques and a novel dual solvent system.
• Quantification of (R,S)-propranolol depletion from the aqueous phase into the polymer-containing organic phase.

Main Results:

• MIPs demonstrated significantly higher affinity for the template (R,S)-propranolol compared to non-imprinted polymers (NIPs).
• The biphasic solvent system with MIPs in the extracting phase increased the extraction of (R,S)-propranolol from the aqueous phase.
• Extraction efficiency was significantly greater with MIPs than with NIPs or no polymer controls.

Conclusions:

• A novel biphasic solvent system utilizing MIPs as a solid extraction phase enhances extraction efficiency and selectivity for aqueous samples.
• This MIP-based approach offers advantages over traditional solvent extraction techniques for industrial applications.
• The technique is transferable to analytical microsystems, enabling promising MIP-based sensing of aqueous media.