Surface-grafted molecularly imprinted polymers for protein recognition

A technique for coating microplate wells with molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) specific for proteins is presented. 3-Aminophenylboronic acid was polymerized in the presence of the following templates: microperoxidase, horseradish peroxidase, lactoperoxidase, and hemoglobin, via oxidation of the monomer by ammonium persulfate. This process resulted in the grafting of a thin polymer layer to the polystyrene surface of the microplates. Imprinting resulted in an increased affinity of the polymer toward the corresponding templates. The influence of the washing procedure, template concentration, and buffer pH on the polymer affinity was analyzed. It was shown that the stabilizing function of the support and spatial orientation of the polymer chains and template functional groups are the major factors affecting the imprint formation and template recognition. Easy preparation of the MIPs, their high stability, and their ability to recognize small and large proteins, as well as to discriminate molecules with small variations in charge, make this approach attractive and broadly applicable in biotechnology, assays and sensors.