Esther Turiel

Molecularly imprinted polymers for sample preparation: a review.

In spite of the huge development of analytical instrumentation during last two decades, sample preparation is still nowadays considered the bottleneck of the whole analytical process. In this regard, efforts have been conducted towards the improvement of the selectivity during extraction and/or subsequent clean-up of sample extracts. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are stable polymers with molecular recognition abilities, provided by the presence of a template during their synthesis and thus are excellent materials to provide selectivity to sample preparation. In the present review, the use of MIPs in solid-phase extraction and solid-phase microextraction as well as its recent incorporation to other extraction techniques such as matrix-solid phase dispersion and stir bar sorptive extraction, among others, is described. The advantages and drawbacks of each methodology as well as the future expected trends are discussed.

Determination of parabens in environmental solid samples by ultrasonic-assisted extraction and liquid chromatography with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry

Analysis of various p-hydroxybenzoic esters (methyl, ethyl, isopropyl, propyl, benzyl, and butylparaben) in environmental solid samples was carried out by sonication-assisted extraction in small columns (SAESC) followed by liquid chromatography with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (MS/MS). Solid samples were placed in small glass columns and extraction performed assisted by sonication in two consecutive steps of 15 min using acetonitrile as extraction solvent. Sample extracts were evaporated under nitrogen stream to 1 ml and analysed by LC-MS/MS. Satisfactory recoveries were obtained ranging from 83% to 110% depending on the analyte. Good limits of quantification (LOQs), between 0.11 and 0.49 ng g(-1) were obtained for LC-MS/MS, making this technique suitable for the determination of parabens in environmental solid samples, particularly at trace level. The developed method was applied to the determination of target analytes in different types of soil and sediments, finding levels between LOD and 6.35 ng g(-1).

Molecularly imprinted polymers for solid-phase microextraction.

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is widely used in analytical laboratories for the analysis of organic compounds, thanks to its simplicity and versatility. However, the current commercially available fibers are based on nonselective sorbents. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are stable polymers with selective molecular recognition abilities, provided by the template used during their synthesis. In the present review, the different strategies followed during the last years for the obtainment of MIP fibers to be used in SPME are described. The advantages and drawbacks of each methodology as well as the future expected trends are discussed.

HPLC imprinted-stationary phase prepared by precipitation polymerisation for the determination of thiabendazole in fruit

A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) tailored for the HPLC determination of the fungicide thiabendazole (TBZ) has been synthesised in one single preparative step by precipitation polymerisation in an acetonitrile/toluene co-solvent, using TBZ as template molecule, methacrylic acid as functional monomer and divinylbenzene-80 as crosslinker. The imprinted polymer particulates obtained were characterised by scanning electron microscopy and nitrogen sorption porosimetry. These analyses showed clearly that spherical polymer particulates (polymer microspheres) with narrow size distributions (average particle diameter approximately 3.5 microm) and well-developed pore structures had been produced. The imprinted microspheres were packed into a stainless steel HPLC column (50 x 4.6 mm id) and evaluated as an imprinted stationary phase. The imprinting effect was demonstrated clearly, i.e., the column was observed to bind TBZ selectively, and the effect of different chromatographic parameters (e.g., temperature, flow-rate and elution solvents) on TBZ retention/elution studied. Under optimised conditions, the TBZ-imprinted column was used for the HPLC-fluorescence (HPLC-F) determination of TBZ directly from orange (both whole fruit and juice), lemon, grape and strawberry extracts at low concentration levels in less than 15 min, without any need for a clean-up step in the analytical protocol.

Molecularly imprinted polymer for the extraction of parabens from environmental solid samples prior to their determination by high performance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet detection.

An analytical methodology incorporating a molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction procedure (MISPE) has been developed for the determination of parabens in environmental solid samples. Four different polymers were prepared combining the use of acetonitrile or toluene as porogen, and 4-vinylpyridine (VP) or methacrylic acid (MAA) as monomer, using benzylparaben (BzP) as a template molecule. Although all the polymers were able to recognize the template in rebinding experiments, the MIP prepared in toluene using MAA showed better performance. This polymer was also capable of recognizing other parabens (methyl, ethyl, isopropyl, propyl, isobutyl, butyl and benzylparaben) allowing to develop an appropriated MISPE procedure for this family of compounds. The extraction of the parabens from environmental solid samples was performed by ultrasonic assisted extraction in small columns (SAESC), and this procedure next to MISPE as clean-up step followed by HPLC-UV determination was successfully used for the determination of parabens in soil and sediment samples of different locations. Recoveries ranging from 80% to 90% have been achieved depending on the compound and the samples, and limits of detection (LODs) were under 1 ng g(-1) for all the compounds, making this method suitable for the determination of parabens in environmental solid matrices. The method was further applied to the determination of paraben contents in real samples, founding levels up to 11.5 ng g(-1) in sea sediments.

Molecularly imprinted polymers: an analytical tool for the determination of benzimidazole compounds in water samples.

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for benzimidazole compounds have been synthesized by precipitation polymerization using thiabendazole (TBZ) as template, methacrylic acid as functional monomer, ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) and divinylbenzene (DVB) as cross-linkers and a mixture of acetonitrile and toluene as porogen. The experiments carried out by molecularly imprinted solid phase extraction (MISPE) in cartridges demonstrated the imprint effect in both imprinted polymers. MIP-DVB enabled a much higher breakthrough volume than MIP-EDMA, and thus was selected for further experiments. The ability of this MIP for the selective recognition of other benzimidazole compounds (albendazole, benomyl, carbendazim, fenbendazole, flubendazole and fuberidazole) was evaluated. The obtained results revealed the high selectivity of the imprinted polymer towards all the selected benzimidazole compounds. An off-line analytical methodology based on a MISPE procedure has been developed for the determination of benzimidazole compounds in tap, river and well water samples at concentration levels below the legislated maximum concentration levels (MCLs) with quantitative recoveries. Additionally, an on-line preconcentration procedure based on the use of a molecularly imprinted polymer as selective stationary phase in HPLC is proposed as a fast screening method for the evaluation of the presence of benzimidazole compounds in water samples.

Assessment of the cross-reactivity and binding sites characterisation of a propazine-imprinted polymer using the Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm

In this paper, the Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm is used to model the interaction of several triazines (desethylatrazine, desisopropylatrazine, simazine, atrazine, propazine and prometryn) with a propazine-imprinted polymer and to explain the observed cross-reactivity. Different rebinding experiments (each herbicide alone or all together in a mixture) were carried out and the experimental binding isotherms were fitted to the Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm. The fitting coefficients obtained (total number of binding sites, mean binding affinity and heterogeneity index) allowed the description of the kind of binding sites present in the imprinted polymer under study. It was concluded that the recognition mechanism was mainly governed by the molecular size although slight differences in the molecular structure may also play an important role. The obtained results suggest that the use of this new methodology can open new pathways for understanding how molecular recognition in imprinted polymers takes place.

Supported liquid membrane-protected molecularly imprinted fibre for solid-phase microextraction of thiabendazole.

In this work, molecularly imprinted polymer fibres (MIP-fibre) have been prepared and evaluated for solid-phase microextraction (SPME), using thiabendazole (TBZ) as template. Inherent limitations of molecular imprinted polymers, such as target recognition in aqueous media, have been solved with the use of organic supported liquid membrane (SLM) protecting the MI-SPME process. MIP-fibres were located inside a polypropylene hollow capillary and protected by an organic solvent immobilized as a thin SLM in the pores of the capillary wall. The extraction procedure involved two simultaneous processes: liquid phase microextraction using polypropylene hollow fibres (HF-LPME) of the analytes from the sample to an organic acceptor solution through a SLM; and SPME of the analytes from the organic acceptor solution to a MIP-fibre inside the polypropylene capillary. The developed methodology was optimized and applied to the extraction of TBZ form spiked orange juices. Calibration curves showed good linearity in the concentration range under study (0.01-5.00 mg L(-1)) and a regression coefficient better than 0.995 was obtained. The detection limit was 4 μg L(-1), low enough to permit the satisfactory analysis of TBZ in real samples, according to European regulation. Relative standard deviations ranged below 10%, indicating good repeatability. By this manner, the advantages of inherent selectivity of MIP SPME fibres and the enrichment and sample cleanup capability of the HF-LPME have been successfully combined into a single device.

Molecularly imprinted polymer grafted to porous polyethylene frits: a new selective solid-phase extraction format.

In this paper, a novel format for selective solid-phase extraction based on a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) is described. A small amount of MIP has been synthesized within the pores of commercial polyethylene (PE) frits and attached to its surface using benzophenone (BP), a photo-initiator capable to start the polymerisation from the surface of the support material. Key properties affecting the obtainment of a proper polymeric layer, such as polymerisation time and kind of cross-linker were optimised. The developed imprinted material has been applied as a selective sorbent for cleaning extracts of thiabendazole (TBZ), as model compound, from citrus samples. The use of different solvents for loading the analyte in the imprinted frits was investigated, as well as the binding capacity of the imprinted polymer. Imprinted frits showed good selectivity when loads were performed using toluene and a linear relationship was obtained for the target analyte up to 1000 ng of loaded analyte. Prepared composite material was applied to the SPE of TBZ in real samples extracts, showing an impressive clean-up ability. Calibrations showed good linearity in the concentration range of 0.05-5.00 μg g(-1), referred to the original solid sample, and the regression coefficients obtained were greater than 0.996. The calculated detection limit was 0.016 μg g(-1), low enough to satisfactory analysis of TBZ in real samples. RSDs at different spiking levels ranged below 15% in all the cases and imprinted frits were reusable without loss in their performance.

Molecularly imprinted stir bars for selective extraction of thiabendazole in citrus samples.

Stir-bar sorptive extraction is based on the partitioning of target analytes between the sample (mostly aqueous-based liquid samples) and a stationary phase-coated magnetic stir bar. Until now, only PDMS-coated stir bars are commercially available, restricting the range of applications to the non-selective extraction of hydrophobic compounds due to the apolar character of PDMS. In this work, a novel stir bar coated with molecularly imprinted polymer as selective extraction phase for sorptive extraction of thiabendazole (TBZ) was developed. Two different procedures, based on physical or chemical coating, were assessed for the preparation of molecularly imprinted stir bars. Under optimum conditions, recoveries achieved both in imprinted and non-imprinted polymer stir bars obtained by physical coating were very low, whereas TBZ was favourably retained by imprinted over non-imprinted polymer stir bars obtained by chemical coating and thus the latter approach was used in further studies. Different parameters affecting both stir-bars preparation (i.e. cross-linker, porogen, polymerization time) and the subsequent selective extraction of TBZ (i.e. washing, loading and elution solvents, extraction time) were properly optimized. The molecularly imprinted coated stir bars were applied to the extraction of TBZ from citrus samples (orange, lemon and citrus juices) allowing its final determination at concentrations levels according to current regulations.