Computational simulation-assisted design and experimental verification of molecularly imprinted polymers for selective extraction of chlorogenic acid.

Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is an active ingredient in honeysuckle with a broad-spectrum of antibacterial activity, suppressing tumor growth and other pharmacological effects. However, it is susceptible to damage during traditional extraction and separation processes. Therefore, developing selective and efficient extraction methods of CGA is essential. Based on computational molecular simulations, a reliable and efficient molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were successfully developed for selective extraction of CGA. MIPs and non-molecularly imprinted polymers (NIPs) were synthesized using a precipitation polymerization method, employing three different functional monomers: [methacrylic acid (MAA), 4-vinylpyridine (4-VP), and methyl methacrylate (MMA)], with CGA serving as the template molecule. To simulate the polymers and predict the optimal ratio between the template and functional monomer, the computational studies and adsorption performance experiments were carried out. The adsorption characteristics and thermal stability of polymers were evaluated by isothermal adsorption, adsorption kinetics, selective adsorption and thermogravimetric analysis, aiming to obtain the MIPs with specific recognition and selectivity for CGA. When the molar ratio of template CGA to functional monomer 4-VP was 1:8, the prepared MIPs was found to have the maximum adsorption capacity (14.85 mg g-1) and the highest imprinting factor (1.74) at the CGA concentration of 100 mg L-1. These results were consistent with those obtained by computational molecular simulation. This study not only provides good guidance for developing separation materials for extracting CGA from natural plants but also inspires the application of computer simulation and molecular docking techniques in the preparation of specific MIPs materials.

Noble Metal Nanostructured Materials for Chemical and Biosensing Systems.

Nanomaterials with unique physical and chemical properties have attracted extensive attention of scientific research and will play an increasingly important role in the future development of science and technology. With the gradual deepening of research, noble metal nanomaterials have been applied in the fields of new energy materials, photoelectric information storage, and nano-enhanced catalysis due to their unique optical, electrical and catalytic properties. Nanostructured materials formed by noble metal elements (Au, Ag, etc.) exhibit remarkable photoelectric properties, good stability and low biotoxicity, which received extensive attention in chemical and biological sensing field and achieved significant research progress. In this paper, the research on the synthesis, modification and sensing application of the existing noble metal nanomaterials is reviewed in detail, which provides a theoretical guidance for further research on the functional properties of such nanostructured materials and their applications of other nanofields.

Carbon-Based Nanomaterials in Sensors for Food Safety.

Food safety is one of the most important and widespread research topics worldwide. The development of relevant analytical methods or devices for detection of unsafe factors in foods is necessary to ensure food safety and an important aspect of the studies of food safety. In recent years, developing high-performance sensors used for food safety analysis has made remarkable progress. The combination of carbon-based nanomaterials with excellent properties is a specific type of sensor for enhancing the signal conversion and thus improving detection accuracy and sensitivity, thus reaching unprecedented levels and having good application potential. This review describes the roles and contributions of typical carbon-based nanomaterials, such as mesoporous carbon, single- or multi-walled carbon nanotubes, graphene and carbon quantum dots, in the construction and performance improvement of various chemo- and biosensors for various signals. Additionally, this review focuses on the progress of applications of this type of sensor in food safety inspection, especially for the analysis and detection of all types of toxic and harmful substances in foods.