Molecularly imprinted polymers selective for β-estradiol

Polymers able to recognize the female steroid hormone, beta -estradiol, have been synthesized using molecular imprinting based on non-covalent interactions. A chromatographic study of the polymers demonstrated a strong dependence of the selectivity and strength of their interaction with analytes on the solvents used both as porogen and chromatographic mobile phase. Hydrogen bonding between the OH-group at C-17 of beta -estradiol and methacrylic acid (the functional monomer of the polymer) plays a major role in the process of molecular recognition but hydrophobic and dipole-dipole interactions also contribute.