Electrochemical sensors based on conducting polymer—polypyrrole

Conducting polymers can be exploited as an excellent tool for the preparation of nanocomposites with nano-scaled biomolecules. Polypyrrole (Ppy) is one of the most extensively used conducting polymers in design of bioanalytical sensors. In this review article significant attention is paid to immobilization of biologically active molecules within Ppy during electrochemical deposition of this polymer. Such unique properties of this polymer as prevention of some undesirable electrochemical interactions and facilitation of electron transfer from some redox enzymes are discussed. Recent advances in application of polypyrrole in immunosensors and DNA sensors are presented. Some new electrochemical target DNA and target protein detection methods based on changes of semiconducting properties of electrochemically generated Ppy doped by affinity agents are introduced. Recent progress and problems in development of molecularly imprinted polypyrrole are considered.     

Electrosynthesized molecularly imprinted polypyrrole films for enantioselective recognition of l-aspartic acid

The electrosynthesis, overoxidation and characterization of l-aspartic acid (l-Asp) imprinted polypyrrole (PPy) films have been performed by using electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance (EQCM). Following the determination of the optimal electrosynthesis parameters for the formation of a smooth and uniform PPy/l-Asp films, the overoxidized polypyrrole (oPPy) matrix templated with either l- or d-aspartic acid (l-, d-Asp) was evaluated as a potential enantioselective recognition element. Under potentiodynamic conditions and in strongly acidic media a significantly higher sensitivity of the l-Asp acid imprinted overoxidized polypyrrole film (oPPy/l-Asp) for l-Asp than d-Asp was observed. The results suggest the feasibility of preparing molecularly imprinted films by electropolymerization for the enantioselective recognition of amino acids and the suitability of EQCM for both monitoring the selective recognition as well as to electrochemically modulate the binding process.     

基于壳聚糖的分子印迹聚合物的制备和应用

壳聚糖具有良好的生物相容性和独特的分子结构,基于其制备的分子印迹聚合物因亲和性和选择性高、应用范围广等特点引起了广泛的关注。本文首先总结了壳聚糖和改性壳聚糖在分子印迹聚合物制备中的作用,然后介绍了壳聚糖分子印迹聚合物在环境污染治理、医药、蛋白质分离与识别、手性物质分离以及吸附功能成分等方面的应用,分析了壳聚糖分子印迹聚合物在各个应用领域的优缺点及发展方向。最后,从发展绿色分子印迹技术以及分子印迹技术与电化学传感器结合等层面对壳聚糖分子印迹聚合物的应用前景进行了展望。     

Determination of epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate with a high‐efficiency electrochemical sensor based on a molecularly imprinted poly(o‐phenylenediamine) film

An electrochemical molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) sensor for detecting the existence of epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate (EGCG) in tea and its products was successfully developed on the basis of a glassy carbon electrode modified with an electropolymerized nonconducting poly(o‐phenylenediamine) film. The properties of the electrode were characterized by cyclic voltammetry, differential pulse voltammetry, and infrared spectroscopy. The template molecules could be rapidly and thoroughly removed by methanol/acetic acid. The linear response range for EGCG was 5.0 × 10^?7–1.0 × 10^?4 mol/L, and the limit of detection was as low as 1.6 × 10^?7 mol/L. The prepared MIP sensor could discriminate between EGCG and its analogs. In addition, satisfactory results were obtained in the detection of real tea samples. The results of our investigation indicate that the MIP sensor was useful for the determination of EGCG with excellent selectivity, high sensitivity, repeatability, and reproducibility. This MIP sensor provides the potential for monitoring the variation of EGCG content during the industrial processes and for predicting the quality of tea and its products. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor for the determination of ampicillin based on a gold nanoparticle and multiwalled carbon nanotube‐coated pt electrode

A novel molecularly imprinted electrochemical sensor was developed for the sensitive and selective determination of ampicillin (AMP). The sensor was prepared on a platinum electrode modified with multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), and a thin film of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). MWCNTs and AuNPs were introduced to enhance the sensor's electronic transmission and sensitivity. The molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) was synthesized using AMP as the template molecule, methacrylic acid as functional monomer, and ethylene glycol maleic rosinate acrylate (EGMRA) as cross‐linker. The performance of the proposed imprinted sensor was investigated using cyclic voltammetry (CV), differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The results showed that the imprinted film displayed a fast and sensitive response to AMP. Under optimal conditions, response peak current had a linear relationship with the concentration of AMP in the range of 1.0 × 10^?8 mol/L to 5.0 × 10^?6 mol/L and a detection limit of 1.0 × 10^?9 mol/L (S/N = 3). This imprinted sensor was used to detect AMP in food samples with recoveries of 91.4–105%. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40613.     

Synthesis of highly selective spherical caffeine imprinted polymers via ultrasound‐assisted precipitation polymerization

A facile and efficient method for synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers via ultrasound‐assisted precipitation polymerization was developed. Caffeine was applied as a model template in the imprinting using methacrylic acid and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as a functional monomer and a crosslinker, respectively. Polymerization under sonochemical conditions proceeded rapidly (within 3 h at 60°C) to afford polymer microspheres with narrow size distributions in excellent yields while maintaining the binding specificity toward the template. It was found that the imprinted polymer prepared at low initial temperature (40°C) exhibited the best caffeine binding performance in terms of specificity and selectivity. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Fabrication of ordered microporous styrene‐acrylonitrile copolymer blend imprinted membranes for selective adsorption of phenol from salicylic acid using breath figure method

Highly selective, ordered microporous molecularly imprinted membranes (MIMs) for phenol were synthesized by breath figure (BF) method using styrene‐acrylonitrile copolymer (SAN) as the membrane matrix and molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles (nano‐MIPs) as the imprinted nanoparticles. The nano‐MIPs were synthesized by oil‐in‐water emulsion polymerization using 4‐vinyl pyridine (4‐VP), methyl methacrylate (MMA) or cinnamic acid (CA) as the functional monomer, respectively. The prepared nano‐MIPs were characterized by transmission electron microscope (TEM) and Raman, whereas MIMs were characterized by SEM, membrane flux, and selective adsorption experiments. Morphological analysis exhibited that the addition of nano‐MIPs improved the formation of ordered and well‐defined porous membrane morphology. Compared with MMA‐MIM and CA‐MIM, the 4‐VP‐MIM exhibited higher membrane flux, adsorption capacity, and stronger selective binding for phenol as well as excellent permeation selectivity for phenol. Moreover, the selective effect of 4‐VP‐MIM on phenol was strongly affected by the amount of 4‐VP imprinted nanoparticles (nano‐4‐VP‐MIPs). The experimental data revealed that the 4‐VP‐MIM containing 2.0 wt % of nano‐4‐VP‐MIPs exhibited the highest separation selectivity for the template phenol, whose selectivity coefficients for phenol relative to salicylic acid (SA) and p‐hydroxybenzoic acid (p‐HB) were 5.6770 and 5.5433, respectively, which was close to the predicted selectivity coefficient value. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42350.     

Rosin‐based molecularly imprinted polymers as the stationary phase in high‐performance liquid chromatography for selective separation of berberine hydrochloride

A novel method for the separation of berberine hydrochloride has been developed. Berberine hydrochloride molecularly imprinted polymers were prepared by suspension polymerization in the aqueous phase using berberine hydrochloride as the template, methyl acrylic acid as a functional monomer, and ethylene glycol maleic rosinate acrylate (which contains a phenanthrene ring skeleton) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as combinatorial crosslinkers. The imprinted polymers were successfully used as a selective stationary phase in high‐performance liquid chromatography. Separation performance of the chromatographic column was determined from the selectivity (evaluated by separation factor) and sorption selectivity (evaluated by imprinting factor) of the molecularly imprinted and non‐imprinted polymers towards the template. The optimum conditions to maximize separation and imprinting factors were investigated. Acetic acid–methanol solution (0.05% v/v) was selected as the optimum mobile phase, while 0.2 mL min^?1 was chosen as the optimized flow rate for selective separation of berberine hydrochloride. The highest imprinting and separation factors obtained were 1.924 and 18.52, respectively. Simultaneously, the chromatographic column backpressure was stable and showed good permeability. The chromatographic column was used to separate effectively template molecules from coptis root extract and other analogues. Such chromatographic columns with high selectivity can be used to selectively separate berberine hydrochloride from other compounds. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry     

Computer simulation and synthesis of stimuli‐responsive polymer by sol‐gel for selective recognition of (4‐chloro‐2‐methylphenoxy)acetic acid

A novel photoresponsive functional monomer bearing a siloxane polymerizable group and azobenzene moieties was synthesized, and then photoresponsive molecularly imprinted sol‐gel polymers were successfully fabricated from the synthesized functional monomer, using (4‐chloro‐2‐methylphenoxy)acetic acid (MCPA) as a molecular template. The photoisomerization properties of the functional monomer are retained after incorporation into the rigid three‐dimensional crosslinked polymer matrix. The template is then removed from the resulting polymer to generate pores, which are complementary to the template in shape, size and functionality. The substrate affinity of the molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) receptor sites is photoswitchable. This can be attributed to the photoisomerization of azobenzene chromophores within the MIP receptors, resulting in alteration of their geometry and the spatial arrangement of their binding functionalities. The binding affinity of the imprinted recognition sites was switchable by alternate irradiation with UV and visible light, suggesting that azobenzene groups located inside the binding sites could be used as chemical sensors and the trans–cis isomerization could regulate the affinity for MCPA. To study the hydrogen bond interactions between template molecules and functional monomer, computational molecular modeling was employed. The data indicate that the design of the MIP is rational. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

分子印迹电化学传感器检测链霉素

为实现链霉素的快速、灵敏测定,将特异性强的分子印迹技术与检测灵敏度高的电化学检测方法结合,构建链霉素分子印迹电化学传感器。以链霉素为模板分子,吡咯为功能单体,利用电化学聚合方法制备分子印迹聚合物(MIP)膜。在最优化实验条件下,以铁氰化钾为探针,利用循环伏安法(CV)对链霉素进行定量测定及传感器性能研究。结果表明:传感器线性范围为5.00×10~(-8)～8.00×10~(-5)mol/L,最低检出限(LOD)为3.45×10~(-8)mol/L,为链霉素的测定提供了高效的方法。     

The preparation of molecularly imprinted poly(o‐phenylenediamine) membranes for the specific O,O‐dimethyl‐α‐hydroxylphenyl phosphonate sensor and its characterization by AC impedance and cyclic voltammetry

A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) membrane for sensing O,O‐dimethyl‐α‐hydroxylphenyl phosphonate (DHP) has been prepared by electropolymerizing o‐phenylenediamine on the glassy carbon electrodes in the presence of DHP. Optimization studies with the aim to enhance insulating properties and response kinetics of the polymer membrane were carried out with respect to template molecular concentration, the monomers concentration, the polymer membrane thick and scan rate. Cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance have been used to characterize the behavior of MIP polymer membrane. The capacitive measurements were also certified the imprinting effect of the polymer layers. The experimental results showed that DHP imprinted polymer has better recognition property for the template than that of a blank polymer. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 2222–2227, 2006     

Preparation and application of sulfadiazine surface molecularly imprinted polymers with temperature‐responsive properties

Novel, temperature‐responsive molecularly imprinted polymers (TMIPs) based on potassium hexatitanate whiskers for selectively adsorbing sulfadiazine (SDZ) from aqueous media were prepared with methacrylic acid (MAA) and 4‐vinylpyridine (4‐VP) as cofunctional monomers and N‐isopropyl acrylamide (NIPAM) as a temperature‐responsive monomer. The template–monomer interactions were studied by molecular simulation. In particular, the effects of different kinds of crosslinkers on the selective recognition ability of the TMIPs in water media were investigated. The temperature–responsive adsorption performance and phase behavior of the molecularly imprinted polymers were studied by batch‐mode binding experiments, swelling experiments, and contact angle testing. The results demonstrate that the combination of MAA, 4‐VP, and NIPAM was a favorable temperature‐responsive imprinted system for SDZ in water, and the cocrosslinking agent of ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) and N,N′‐methylene bisacrylamide (MBA) was more suitable compared with either pure EGDMA or MBA. The adsorption kinetics and adsorption isotherms were analyzed by the fitting of different adsorption models. Also, the effect of the temperature on the recovery was investigated by the determination of the spiked SDZ in real‐water samples with solid‐phase extraction and high‐performance liquid chromatography. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 41769.     

Preparation and application of Norfloxacin‐MIP/polysulfone blending molecular imprinted polymer membrane

Norfloxacin‐molecular imprinted polymer was prepared by bulk polymerization with Norfloxacin (NFXC) as template molecule, Methacrylic acid (MAA) as functional monomer and Trimethylolpropane Trimethacrylate (TRIM) as cross linking agent. And the imprinted polymer membranes of polysulfone‐matrix were also prepared by blending method. The structures of Norfloxacin‐molecular imprinted polymer were measured and confirmed by spectra of FTIR and TEM, respectively. Although the combination characteristic and mechanism of this molecular recognition membrane were studied by scan electro‐microscope (SEM) and combinative equation experiment, the results showed that the molecular recognition membrane represented high selectivity for Norfloxacin. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Trace bensulfuron‐methyl analysis in tap water,soil, and soybean samples by a combination of molecularly imprinted stir bar sorption extraction and HPLC‐UV

A molecularly imprinted stir bar was prepared using bensulfuron‐methyl as the template molecule and methacrylic acid as the functional monomer. The imprinted and nonimprinted stir bars were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, nitrogen sorption porosimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, and differential scanning calorimetry. Extraction time, desorption time and pH value affecting extraction efficiency of the stir bar have been evaluated to achieve the selectively direct preconcentration of the template from aqueous samples. Competitive sorption experiments demonstrated that the imprinted stir bar gave high selectivity and imprinted effect on the template bensulfuron‐methyl compared to the nonimprinted stir bar. Based on S/N of 3, LOD was 0.83 nM. The method showed good recoveries and precision, 92.4% (RSD 1.5%, n = 3) for tap water spiked with 126 ng (100 mL sample), 84.6% (RSD 2.2%, n = 3) for soil spiked with 210 ng (100 g sample) and 73.7% (RSD 2.1%, n = 3) for soybean spiked with 250 ng (5 g sample), suggesting that the imprinted stir bar sorption extraction can be successfully applied to the preconcentration of bensulfuron‐methyl in real samples. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Ibuprofen‐imprinted ultrathin poly[N‐(2‐hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide] films

Surface molecularly imprinted (MIP) poly[N‐(2‐hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide] [poly(HPMA)] films were prepared via interface‐mediated reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization from 4‐cyano‐4‐(propylsulfanylthiocarbonyl) sulfanyl pentanoic acid immobilized silicon substrate using N‐(2‐hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide as the functional monomer, N,N′‐methylene(bis)acrylamide as the crosslinking agent, and ibuprofen as the template molecule. The highly crosslinked MIP layer (～12 nm) was homogeneously grafted onto the silicon surface, which favors fast mass transfer and rapid binding kinetics. Binding capacities and adsorption parameters of the MIP poly(HPMA) films were calculated from the root‐mean‐square roughness data obtained by atomic force microscopy measurements using the Luzinov and Langmuir equations adopted for this study. The target binding assays demonstrate the desirable binding capacity and imprinting efficiency of the MIP poly(HPMA) films. Meanwhile, the computational optimization and energy calculations showed the formation of the self‐assembly of monomer and template molecule via noncovalent interactions that leads to a 1:4 molecular complex between ibuprofen and N‐(2‐hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide. This study provides a versatile approach to the quantitative determination of low‐molecular‐weight biomolecules on surface‐imprinted polymers. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2018 , 135, 45707.     

Molecularly imprinted polymers for the selective recognition of l‐phenylalanine based on 1‐buty‐3‐methylimidazolium ionic liquid

To enhance the affinity of 4‐vinyl pyridine to l ‐phenylalanine (l ‐Phe) and convert the imprinting process from the aqueous phase to the organic phase, an oil‐soluble amino acid ionic liquid was introduced as a template. In this study, 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium α‐aminohydrocinnamic acid salt was first applied to prepared surface molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) in acetonitrile for the selective recognition of l ‐Phe. Fluorescence quenching analysis of the functional monomer on the template was investigated under different conditions to study the imprinting mechanism. Several binding studies, such as the sorption kinetics, sorption thermodynamics, and solid‐phase extraction application, and the chiral resolution of racemic phenylalanine were investigated. The binding isotherms were fitted by nonlinear regression to the Freundlich model to investigate the recognition mechanism. The affinity distribution analysis revealed that polymers imprinted by ionic liquid showed higher homogeneous binding sites than those imprinted by l ‐Phe. The competition tests were conducted by a molecularly imprinting solid‐phase extraction procedure to estimate the selective separation properties of the MIPs for l ‐Phe. The target MIP was shown to be successfully for the separation of l ‐Phe from an amino acid mixture. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42485.     

Colorimetric and fluorometric molecularly imprinted polymer sensors and binding assays

This mini review examines the utility of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) in colorimetric and fluorometric sensors and binding assays. The review focuses on the challenges in developing MIP‐based spectroscopic sensors. Specifically, strategies to address the low selectivities, lack of sensing mechanism and poor optical material properties of MIPs are examined and critically evaluated using examples from the literature. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry     

A Review of Sensors and Biosensors Modified with Conducting Polymers and Molecularly Imprinted Polymers Used in Electrochemical Detection of Amino Acids: Phenylalanine,Tyrosine, and Tryptophan

Recently, the studies on developing sensors and biosensors—with an obvious interdisciplinary character—have drawn the attention of many researchers specializing in various fundamental, but also complex domains such as chemistry, biochemistry, physics, biophysics, biology, bio-pharma-medicine, and bioengineering. Along these lines, the present paper is structured into three parts, and is aimed at synthesizing the most relevant studies on the construction and functioning of versatile devices, of electrochemical sensors and biosensors, respectively. The first part presents examples of the most representative scientific research focusing on the role and the importance of the phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan amino acids, selected depending on their chemical structure and their impact on the central nervous system. The second part is dedicated to presenting and exemplifying conductor polymers and molecularly imprinted polymers used as sensitive materials in achieving electrochemical sensors and biosensors. The last part of the review analyzes the sensors and biosensors developed so far to detect amino acids with the aid of conductor polymers and molecularly imprinted polymers from the point of view of the performances obtained, with emphasis on the detection methods, on the electrochemical reactions that take place upon detection, and on the electroanalytical performances. The present study was carried out with a view to highlighting, for the benefit of specialists in medicine and pharmacy, the possibility of achieving and purchasing efficient devices that might be used in the quality control of medicines, as well as in studying and monitoring diseases associated with these amino acids.     

Effect of fabrication temperature on strain‐sensing capacity of polypyrrole‐coated conductive fabrics

Textile strain sensors were made from polypyrrole‐coated stretchable fabrics by a method of screen printing with chemical vapor deposition. The effect of polymerization temperature on the sensing performances was studied. It was found that polymerization at low temperature significantly improved the electrical conductivity, strain sensitivity and environmental stability of the fabric sensors. The conductive fabrics were characterized using X‐ray diffraction, thermogravimetry, contact angle measurements, particle size analysis, scanning electron microscopy and scanning probe microscopy. Powders of pure polypyrrole prepared by the same fabrication method were characterized for a better understanding of the polypyrrole coating. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry