Mass-sensitive and resistive detection of bioanalytes - Synthetic antibodies and plastic replicae

Surface imprinting into polymer thin films and nanoparticles leads to highly selective interaction centers. For instance, matrices templated with allergens, (e.g. sesame protein or latex protein) are capable for detecting them in solutions reaching selectivity factors of at least five compounds. Casting an imprinted polymer leads to plastic copies of the initial template that can be used for standardized sensor synthesis also leading to outstanding selectivity and sensitivity. Such strictly chemical recognition can also be observed for glycolipids by the example of erythrocytes, where even sub-groups of the ABO system lead to recognition: an polymer imprinted with A₂B erythrocytes strongly favors its template over all competitors.