Molecular Imprinting of Polymeric Core-Shell Nanoparticles

Abstract

In order to evaluate the compatibility of structured nanoparticles produced by aqueous emulsion polymerisation with the non-covalent imprinting procedure, a number of imprinted polymeric nanoparticles have been synthesised by seeded emulsion polymerisation in the presence and absence of a porogenic solvent. Propranolol was chosen as the template molecule using methacrylic acid (MAA) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) as functional monomer and crosslinker respectively. The influence of the porogen and the amount of template added was studied by measuring the capacity of the polymeric particles to rebind template both in organic and aqueous buffers by radioligand binding assay. By increasing the amount of template from 0.5 to 6% (mol/mol with respect to monomers) the specific rebinding was increased from 2% to 24% in aqueous buffer and to 31% in a toluene based assay. The influence of the porosity was also established when the rebinding was performed in an organic solvent.

Towards Smart Drug Delivery: Exploration of a Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Network

“…Specific recognition is influenced by the type of interaction established between the template and the monomers prior to polymerization, which could be covalent, non-covalent or a combination of the two. 2 Among these types of interactions, covalent interactions are the strongest and most selective, however, the approach is limited to a few specific functional groups. 92 The covalent technique, developed by Wulff 81,82,83 and his colleagues, allowed the template and the monomer to undergo reversible covalent binding prior to polymerization, which results in the covalent bond remaining intact.…”

“…125 These advantages generally outweigh the limitations of irregularity of the particles produced, the waste of polymer product and the limited control in the process. 2 Free radical polymerizations are usually performed using one of methods Yan, 2003). 110 Depending on the objective of the polymer synthesis, a specific polymerization method may be utilized in favor of another to achieve the desired outcome.…”

“…267 For this study, propranolol was selected as the template to be imprinted in the cavities because it has been previously non-covalently imprinted by others for drug delivery. 1,2,89,258,268,269 Propranolol has also been studied extensively as a template for MIPs in other areas such as to distinguish the enantiomers of the drug in competitive binding assays, 1 solid phase extraction, 270 capillary electrochromatography, 271 HPLC separations, 272 and sensors. 273 Furthermore, propranolol has been demonstrated to respond well in the MMA-DMAA system and interact well with acrylic networks as it is a fairly soluble drug.…”

Towards Smart Drug Delivery: Exploration of a Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Network

“…1 Significant advances have been made in the development of new technologies that allow for optimized drug delivery. 2 For example, intelligent release of a therapeutic agent, which occurs as a response to a specific stimulus, can allow for controlled drug delivery. 3 The design and synthesis of biocompatible materials useful in sustained drug delivery are still under development despite receiving an overwhelming level of attention, especially in the past decade.…”

A Critical Review on the Use of Molecular Imprinting for Trace Heavy Metal and Micropollutant Detection

“…Alternatively, emulsion polymerization takes advantage of high-shear homogenization of the monomers in the presence of co-surfactants and often produces nanoparticles in higher yield [31]. Core-shell emulsion polymerization and grafting are well-suited for the preparation of complex nanoparticles with polymer layers deposited on various materials [32,33]. Micro-and nano-gels are cross-linked unimolecular particles, which are mostly soluble and produced via extensive grinding or high-dilution polymerization.…”