Molecular imprinted ormosils for nafcillin recognition by room temperature phosphorescence optosensing

Nafcillin imprinted sol–gels were used as specific binding materials for the room temperature phosphorescence (RTP) recognition of nafcillin using a flow injection system. Selective and reversible binding of the template to imprinted sol–gels could be observed by tailoring the hydrophobic/hydrophilic balance of the materials. Also, the possibility of minimizing non-specific interactions was evaluated by end-capping with trimethyl silyl groups. Control experiments were performed with non imprinted reference sol–gels. The recognition mechanism and the analytical potential of these materials for developing stable, selective and sensitive approaches for nafcillin recognition in real samples are outlined.