Reproducible Molecularly Imprinted Piezoelectric Sensor for Accurate and Sensitive Detection of Ractopamine in Swine and Feed Products

Abstract

This paper describes the development of a reproducible molecularly imprinted piezoelectric sensor for the accurate and sensitive detection of ractopamine (RAC) in swine and feed products. The synthesized molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) was directly immobilized on the surface of a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) Au chip as the recognition element. The experimental parameters in the fabrication, measurement and regeneration process were evaluated in detail to produce an MIP-based piezoelectric sensor with high sensing capability. The developed piezoelectric sensor was verified to perform favorably in the RAC analysis of swine and feed products, with acceptable accuracy (recovery: 75.9–93.3%), precision [relative standard deviation (n = 3): 2.3–6.4%], and sensitivity [limit of detection: 0.46 ng g−1 (swine) and 0.38 ng g−1 (feed)]. This portable MIP-based chip for the piezoelectric sensing of RAC could be reused for at least 30 cycles and easily stored for a long time. These results demonstrated that the developed MIP-based piezoelectric sensor presents an accurate, sensitive and cost-effective method for the quantitative detection of RAC in complex samples. This research offers a promising strategy for the development of novel effective devices used for use in food safety analysis.

Recent Advances in Quartz Crystal Microbalance Biosensors Based on the Molecular Imprinting Technique for Disease-Related Biomarkers

“…The piezoelectric biosensor vehicle, based on a labelfree technique, has achieved a big advance [72] and has been successfully carried out in applications of biomolecule detection. Therefore, the QCM biosensor is the most popular in various fields, such as food control [73], environmental monitoring [74], drug function mechanisms [75,76], etc. Piezoelectric biosensors, which are mass-based chemical sensors (e.g., QCM), have important properties, such as high sensitivity and selectivity, ease of use, cost-effectiveness, stability, portability, and simplicity.…”

Development of Molecular Imprinting Polymer Nanofiber for Aflatoxin B1 Detection Based on Quartz Crystal Microbalance

“…Molecular imprinting polymer is one effective way to create an artificial receptor that can recognize a molecule with its specific characteristics [26]. MIP can be used to acknowledge biomolecules, proteins, carbohydrates, cells, and other small molecules [27], and receptors of MIP can also recognize gas molecules, such as odors from vapors. Therefore MI is widely applied to sensors.…”

A First Tentative for Simultaneous Detection of Fungicides in Model and Real Wines by Microwave Sensor Coupled to Molecularly Imprinted Sol-Gel Polymers

“…Several transducing systems were already used in combination with molecularly imprinted polymers, such as: electro-chemiluminescence- [14], fluorescence- [15], surface plasmon resonance- [16], surface acoustic wave (SAW)- [17], electrochemical- [18], piezoelectric- [19], capacitance- [20] and thermometric-based [21] sensors. For small molecules such as antibiotics, both SAW and electrochemical sensors based on MIPs were successfully developed [22,23].…”