Molecular Imprinting

By molecular imprinting and molecular imprinting of polymer nanoparticles technically adapted, fully synthetic affinity receptors can be produced that provide new production opportunities for biotechnological, biomedical and chemical processes.

Molecular recognition plays a crucial role for the particular biological effect in biological processes in nature.

The immune response leading to the formation of antibodies in response to very small amounts of antigen, or the energy savings due to enzymes that can stabilize the transition state of a reaction to be catalyzed, are examples of a specific binding between biological host molecules and specific molecular structures.

The high selectivity of these natural systems eg enzymes achieved through complementary to a einzulagernden substrate forms on the enzyme surface. Enzymes are now used in many technical applications as biocatalysts, but in this respect they have by their instability one major drawback.

The molecular imprinting offers, by the use of synthetic polymers is an alternative to these natural biocatalysts.

The result is a matrix that has affinity for biomolecules, with the advantages of a chemically stable matrix.

Principle

By acting as a template or template molecule around a polymer network is formed by cross-linking polymerization. The template for the molecule to be identified selectively later, while surrounded by the polymer.

Then the template is washed out again from the crosslinked polymer. Leaving a cavity in the polymer is referred to as imprint, and the shape and polarity distribution (dipole, hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic interactions ) the template is complementary.

The environment of this cavity thus assumes specific interactions with the template molecule and shows a pronounced affinity for these molecules.

The molecular imprinting can be specific binding sites, similar to those in enzymes or antibodies, generate cross-linked synthetic polymers.

Applications

Structure recognition elements that enter into a strong and selective binding to molecules can be used as hard-wearing, sensitive receptors in trace analysis of compounds.

Other possibilities include the removal of unwanted compounds from the food or from body fluids (eg blood purification ), an in the industrial production of fine chemicals necessary preparative separation (racemate separation), or the use as an artificial enzyme.