Molecular imprinting of AMP by an ionic-noncovalent dual approach.

In order to mimic recognition properties of adenylate kinase, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were prepared for adenosine 5'-monophosphate (AMP), a substrate of the enzyme. Different functional monomers interacting with the phosphate moiety were tested, and the MIP giving the best specific binding of AMP was composed with one equivalent of 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate and ten equivalents of acrylamide compared to AMP. Packed into solid phase cartridge, this polymer showed similar characteristics than the enzyme, since it was specific for AMP toward other nucleotides.

Molecularly imprinted polymer of 5-methyluridine for solid-phase extraction of pyrimidine nucleoside cancer markers in urine.

Normal and modified urinary nucleosides represent potential biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. To selectively extract modified nucleosides, we developed a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) of 5-methyluridine as selective material for molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE). The MIPs were obtained from vinyl-phenylboronate ester derivative of the template, acrylamide and pentaerythritol triacrylate co-polymer, and were tested in batch and cartridge experiments with aqueous samples.

Selective adenosine-5'-monophosphate uptake by water-compatible molecularly imprinted polymer.

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were prepared for adenosine-5'-monophosphate (AMP), a substrate of AMP-activated protein kinase. The template molecule was formed by the vinylphenylboronate diester of adenosine on which 5'-free hydroxide was protected by tert-butyldimethylsilyl group in order to mimic the steric hindrance of the phosphate moiety of AMP. Molecular imprinting was performed by complexing acrylamide and the template in a highly cross-linked polymer.

Virtual imprinting as a tool to design efficient MIPs for photosynthesis-inhibiting herbicides.

Molecular modelling and computational screening were used to identify functional monomers capable of interacting with several different photosynthesis-inhibiting herbicides. The process involved the design of a virtual library of molecular models of functional monomers containing polymerizable residues and residues able to interact with the template through electrostatic, hydrophobic, Van der Waals forces and dipole-dipole interactions. Each of the entries in the virtual library was probed for its possible interactions with molecular models of the template molecules.

How to find effective functional monomers for effective molecularly imprinted polymers?

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are materials mimicking biological receptors in their specific recognition of analytes. Although molecular imprinting has been around for over 30 years, recently this technology has made rapid developments. However, recent investigations have led mainly to the synthesis of new polymers imprinted for a wider range of compounds without real and better understanding of the mechanisms occurring during the polymerisation and the recognition process.