Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
Scheme 15.2 Covalent imprinting of a-phenyl-
D
-mannopyranoside in a divinyl benzene/4-
vinylphenylboronic acid matrix, via the formation of covalent boronic ester linkages between
the 4-vinylphenylboronic acid and the carbohydrate. Adapted from Wulff, Vesper, et al.
(1977). Copyright 1977 Wiley InterScience.
The covalent nature of the monomer-template complex yields greater control over
the imprinting process. The kinetic stability of the prepolymerization complex
ensures that the binding sites are more structurally homogeneous and are lined
with the same number of recognition groups. The primary disadvantage of the
covalent imprinting process is that it requires additional synthetic steps. First,
the covalent bonds in the monomer-template complex must be formed. Second,
the polymer-template bonds in the polymer must be cleaved after polymerization.
Another disadvantage with respect to their use in molecular sensors is their slow
binding kinetics that are due to the necessity to reform the covalent bonds in the
binding event. Thus, covalent MIPs are often better suited for use in single-use
sensor systems such as dosimeters or binding assays.
