A MOLECULARLY IMPRINTED SYNTHETIC-POLYMER RECEPTOR-SELECTIVE FOR ATRAZINE

A synthetic polymer selective for atrazine was prepared by a molecular imprinting technique, and the binding characteristics of the atrazine-imprinted polymer were evaluated, Scatchard analysis showed that at least two classes of binding sites were formed in the imprinted polymer, and a dissociation constant of the higher affinity binding sites was estimated to be 12 mu M. The induced affinity and selectivity by atrazine imprinting were examined chromatographically. The polymer gave more than 60 times longer retention for atrazine than the nonimprinted polymer with the same chemical composition. The selectivity was evaluated by capacity factors of atrazine and other pesticides, and atrazine showed the longest retention time among the tested compounds with 1,3,5-triazine-based structure. Other herbicides and pesticides with unrelated structures were retained 1% or less, as compared to atrazine. Because the optimal binding performance was exhibited in organic solvents, the synthetic polymer receptor is expected to be a good material in lipophilic herbicide analysis.