ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Synthesis of poly (methacrylic acid-co-ethylene glycol methacrylate) as a molecularly printed polymer for histamine detection

Marília de A. Oliveira, Maria L. da C. Gonzaga, Bruno S. Araújo, Roselayne F. Furtado, Celli R. Muniz, Alejandro P. Ayala, and Carlucio R. Alves

Departamento de Química, Universidade Estadual Do Ceará, Fortaleza, Brazil

E-mail: mariliaaoliveira7@gmail.com

Received: 5 April 2022  Accepted: 7 October 2022

Abstract:

Histamine, an important biological chemical that occurs naturally and mainly in seafood, causes an undesirable inflammatory response when consumed in large amounts. Food and health regulatory bodies around the world limit its concentration, and histamine is usually detected by conventional methods, in slow processes. As an efficient option, Molecular Impression Polymers (MIPs), synthetic structures containing imprinted nanocavities that are capable of specifically re-binding to their target, have been presented. In this work, MIPs were synthesized by the precipitation method, using methacrylic acid as a functional monomer, ethylene glycol dimethylmethacrylate as a cross-linking agent, and histamine as a template molecule in a single polymerization step, unlike the complex methodologies that have been disclosed. For comparison purposes, NIP (non-imprinted polymer) was prepared. The physicochemical characterizations for the polymers were made through infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Raman, and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis, whose results qualified the polymer synthesis. The evaluation of the detection and removal of histamine from the MIP and detection in a real sample of tuna containing about 2 mg/100 g, was performed by cyclic voltammetry. The detection limit (LOD) was 0.105 mg/100 g. Therefore, through a simple methodology, it was possible to synthesize an efficient and selective MIP for the detection of histamine in canned tuna.

Graphical abstract

Keywords: Molecularly imprinted polymers; Histamine; Tuna fish; Cyclic voltammetry

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-022-02537-x

Chemical Papers 77 (4) 1821–1833 (2023)