0000000000398506
AUTHOR
Francesca Lanza
Method for Synthesis and Screening of Large Groups of Molecularly Imprinted Polymers
A technique for the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) in small scale (∼55 mg) coupled with direct in situ processing and batch rebinding evaluation is reported. The primary assessment is based on quantification by HPLC or UV absorbance measurement of the amount of template released from the polymer in a given solvent. This method allows a rapid screening of the parameters of importance to reach a desired level of binding affinity capacity and selectivity for a given target molecule. This was demonstrated for the triazine herbicide terbutylazine, where an initial screening was performed for the type of functional monomer used in the MIP preparation. Thus among the six functi…
Determination of phenytoin in plasma by molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction.
Abstract A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) using phenytoin as template and methacrylamide as the functional monomer was prepared. The selectivity was measured by comparing capacity factors of phenytoin and other structurally related compounds. The polymer was evaluated as a selective sorbent in molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE). Several washing solvents were tested to study their ability to disrupt the non-specific interactions occurring between the sample and the polymer matrix and the role of water in the recognition process was also investigated. It was shown that the key step of successful sample extraction is the right choice of the washing solvent. Plasma sample…
Grafting of Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Films on Silica Supports Containing Surface-Bound Free Radical Initiators
Silica particles containing surface-bound free radical initiators have been used as supports for the grafting of thin films of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). This technique offers a means of fine-tuning the layer thickness for improved kinetic properties or enhanced capacity in chromatographic or sensor applications. Thus prepared MIPs imprinted with l-phenylalanine anilide, have been characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), elemental analysis, fluorescence microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), providing evidence concerning the reproducibility in each step and the quantity and quality of the grafted…
Studies on the Process of Formation, Nature and Stability of Binding Sites in Molecularly Imprinted Polymers
AbstractIn Molecular Imprinting the nature of the templated binding sites and the mechanism of their formation are still poorly understood. For this reason our groups are carrying out fundamental studies concerning known imprinting protocols, with the primary aim of shedding light on the role of the template in the different steps of the polymerisation, from the formation of primary chains to the build-up of the porous structure. In this paper we report our initial results concerning copolymers of methacrylic acid (MAA) and ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) and their formation in presence or absence of the templates 9-ethyladenine, ametryn or terbutylazine. Monitoring the monomer disappe…
Selective trace enrichment of chlorotriazine pesticides from natural waters and sediment samples using terbuthylazine molecularly imprinted polymers
Two molecularly imprinted polymers were synthesized using either dichloromethane or toluene as the porogen and terbuthylazine as the template and were used as solid-phase extraction cartridges for the enrichment of six chlorotriazines (deisopropylatrazine, deethylatrazine, simazine, atrazine, propazine, and terbuthylazine) in natural water and sediment samples. The extracted samples were analyzed by liquid chromatography/diode array detection (LC/DAD). Several washing solvents, as well as different volumes, were tested for their ability to remove the matrix components nonspecifically adsorbed on the sorbents. This cleanup step was shown to be of prime importance to the successful extraction…
Development of a semiautomated procedure for the synthesis and evaluation of molecularly imprinted polymers applied to the search for functional monomers for phenytoin and nifedipine
Abstract A previously described scaled-down version of the established monolith procedure, where molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are prepared on the bottom surface of chromatographic vials [Anal. Chem. 71 (1999) 2092] has been here further optimised with respect to its full automation. The protocol results in savings of time and reagents compared to the monolith procedure, allowing ca. 60 polymers (∼50 mg each) to be synthesised in parallel. Both blank and imprinted polymers are then evaluated in situ by equilibrium batch rebinding tests. Each step in the synthesis and evaluation was considered with the aim of achieving an automated method with wide applicability with regards to templ…