Design of molecularly imprinted polymer-based biomimetic surface plasmon resonance sensor for detection of methamphetamine in plasma and urine

Abstract

Methamphetamine (METH) is one of the most abused illicit drugs in the world due to its easy synthesis, cheap cost and strong addictive properties. A molecularly imprinted polymer-based plasmonic sensor was successfully developed for highly selective detection of METH. We used a molecular imprinting technique to precisely determine the target analyte binding site, and the high affinity recognition side was verified by plasmonic detection method. This process resulted in MIP-based surface plasmon resonance (SPR) plasmonic sensor system, and the change in refractivity was proportional to METH concentration in the linear range of 1.67 mu M and 167.5 mu M. Notably, under optimized conditions, the detection limit of this MIP-based SPR sensor was as low as 0.66 mu M and 0.58 mu M which meets the detection limit requirements of METH detection in artificial plasma and artificial urine, respectively. The proposed plasmonic SPR platform based on MIP technology holds significant promise for the selective and accurate detection of these substances. Its sensitive and excellent selective analytical performance makes it suitable for fast drug testing and opens up new possibilities for the design and implementation of drug sensing methods.