Facile synthesis of novel helical imprinted fibers based on zucchini-derived microcoils for efficient recognition of target protein in biological sample

Highly selective recognition and purification of target proteins from complex biological matrices remains a challenging subject in natural and life sciences. Compared with natural recognition receptors, artificial imprinted polymers are an ideal alternative candidate. In this study, we report a novel method to prepare helical protein imprinted fibers (HPIFs) with zucchini-derived microcoils as a carrier, firstly. Inspired by the self-polymerization of adhesive proteins in mussels, dopamine and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid were chosen as bifunctional monomers for the first time to form a biocompatible imprinted layer. The chemical/physical properties and recognition performance of HPIFs were studied in a series of experiments. Additionally, the practicability of HPIFs was verified by specifically recognizing target protein in complex egg white sample. The one-step synthesis process and excellent binding performance of HPIFs make them a promising material for protein recognition and purification, and endow HPIFs with potential application value in the food, chemical and pharmaceutical fields.