Evaluation of new selective molecularly imprinted polymers for the extraction of resveratrol from Polygonum cuspidatum

Four different molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were prepared using resveratrol as the template, methacrylic acid (MAA) or acrylamide (AA) as functional monomers, 2,2-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as the initiator, and thermo- or photo-induced polymerization. The ability of the different polymers to rebind selectively not only the template but also other phenols was evaluated. In parallel, the influence of the different templates and functional monomers used during polymer syntheses on the performance of the obtained MIPs was also studied through different rebinding experiments. The binding ability and selectivity of the polymer were studied by static balance method and Scatchard analysis. It was concluded that AA-based polymer by photo-induced polymerization presents the best properties to be used as a selective absorbent for the extraction of resveratrol.