Cellulose-based hydrogel on quantum dots with molecularly imprinted polymers for the detection of CA19-9 protein cancer biomarker

Molecularly imprinted polymers MIPs were successfully assembled around quantum dots (QDs), for the detection of the protein biomarker CA19-9 associated to pancreatic cancer (PC). These imprinted materials MIP@QDs were incorporated within the cellulose hydrogel with retention of its conformational structure inside the binding cavities. The concept is to use MIPs which function as the biorecognition elements, conjugated to cadmium telluride QDs as the sensing system. The excitation wavelength was set to 477 nm and the fluorescence signal was measured at its maximum intensity, with an emission range between 530 and 780 nm. The fluorescence quenching of the imprinted cellulose hydrogels occurred with increasing concentrations of CA19-9, showing linearity in the range 2.76 x 10(-2) - 5.23 x 10(-2) U/ml, in a 1000-fold diluted human serum. Replicates of the imprinted hydrogel show a linear response below the cut-off values for pancreatic cancer diagnosis (< 23 U/ml), a limit of detection of 1.58 x 10(-3) U/ml and an imprinting factor (IF) of 1.76. In addition to the fact that the imprinted cellulose hydrogel displays good stability and selectivity towards CA19-9 when compared with the non-imprinted controls, the conjugation of MIPs to QDs increases the sensitivity of the system for an optical detection method towards ranges within clinical significance. This fact shows potential for the imprinted hydrogel to be applied as a sensitive, low-cost format for point-of-care tests (PoCTs).

Automated summary

In this study, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were successfully assembled around quantum dots (QDs) for the detection of the protein biomarker CA19-9 associated with pancreatic cancer (PC). The imprinted cellulose hydrogel exhibited fluorescence quenching with increasing concentrations of CA19-9, showing linearity in a range that is clinically significant. The MIPs conjugated to QDs increased the sensitivity of the system for optical detection, making it a potential candidate for sensitive and low-cost point-of-care tests (PoCTs).