Molecularly Imprinted Polymer-Based Sensor for Electrochemical Detection of Cortisol

Abstract

As a steroid hormone, cortisol has a close relationship with the stress response, and therefore, can be used as a biomarker for early detection of stress. An electrochemical immunosensor is one of the most widely used methods to detect cortisol, with antibodies as its bioreceptor. Apart from conventional laboratory-based methods, the trend for cortisol detection has seemed to be exploiting antibodies and aptamers. Both can provide satisfactory performance with high selectivity and sensitivity, but they still face issues with their short shelf life. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have been widely used to detect macro- and micro-molecules by forming artificial antibodies as bioreceptors. MIPs are an alternative to natural antibodies, which despite demonstrating high selectivity and a low degree of cross-reactivity, often also show a high sensitivity to the environment, leading to their denaturation. MIPs can be prepared with convenient and relatively affordable fabrication processes. They also have high durability in ambient conditions, a long shelf life, and the ability to detect cortisol molecules at a concentration as low as 2 ag/mL. By collecting data from the past five years, this review summarizes the antibody and aptamer-based amperometric sensors as well as the latest developments exploiting MIPs rather than antibodies. Lastly, factors that can improve MIPs performance and are expected to be developed in the future are also explained.

Advancements in Cortisol Detection: From Conventional Methods to Next-Generation Technologies for Enhanced Hormone Monitoring

“…Traditional capture molecules used for cortisol detection are monoclonal antibodies and aptamers. In recent years, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have emerged as an inexpensive and versatile tool for cortisol capture, − retaining high specificity while being cheaper to synthesize and functionalize. Figure shows the process of MIP synthesis via the process of molecular imprinting, wherein a template molecule is incorporated during the polymerization of a chosen monomer.…”

Passive sweat wearable: A new paradigm in the wearable landscape toward enabling “detect to treat” opportunities

“…Mugo et al demponstrated a wearable textile-based MIP electrochemical biosensor for cortisol in human sweat. Another recent review paper by Yulianti et al, dives deep into the MIP based sweat sensors for the detection of cortisol (Yulianti et al, 2022). BASED SWEAT WEARABLE BIOSENSORS…”

Electrochemical Sensors for Cortisol: A Review

“…A majority of previously published reviews only cover cortisol sensors that employ a single type of bioreceptor. Yulianti et al (2022) [33] mainly focused on the advances in MIP-based cortisol sensors but also gave a brief summary of aptasensors and immunosensors. Karuppaih et al (2023) [34] discuss the progress made in the electrochemical sensing of cortisol with all three types of sensors.…”