Molecular imprinting of aptamer/carbamazepine complexes for the development of an optical nanosensor

Salim, IN ORCID: 0009-0000-6663-2471, Richards, EF and Ashley, J ORCID: 0000-0002-7062-1019 (2026) Molecular imprinting of aptamer/carbamazepine complexes for the development of an optical nanosensor. Analyst, 151 (9). pp. 2544-2551. ISSN 0003-2654

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Abstract

Monitoring anti-seizure medications (ASMs) such as carbamazepine is important to ensure that the correct dosage is given to patients, which provides the maximum therapeutic effect. However, therapeutic windows for carbamazepine are narrow and need to be highly tailored towards the patients. Therefore, there is a need for more precise analytical methods for monitoring ASMs. Here we report a new hybrid aptamer/molecularly imprinted nanoparticle (nanoMIP) optical nanosensor utilising fluorescence quenching for the detection of carbamazepine. The nanosensor relies on a co-operative based binding mechanism whereby when the aptamer binds to carbamazepine, it undergoes structural switching to change its 3D conformation and binds to the nanoMIP. Using a solid-phase imprinting technique, we synthesized nanoMIPs that recognise and bind to the aptamer/carbamazepine complexes. The resultant nanoMIPs can then selectively recognise and bind to the aptamer complex, resulting in a switch-off signal. The sensor demonstrated a limit of detection (LOD) of 12.7 nM and excellent sample recoveries of around 95% in 50% human serum.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Humans; Carbamazepine; Anticonvulsants; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Biosensing Techniques; Aptamers, Nucleotide; Nanoparticles; Molecular Imprinting; Limit of Detection; Aptamers, Nucleotide; Molecular Imprinting; Carbamazepine; Humans; Limit of Detection; Biosensing Techniques; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Nanoparticles; Anticonvulsants; 3401 Analytical Chemistry; 34 Chemical Sciences; Nanotechnology; Bioengineering; Aptamers, Nucleotide; Molecular Imprinting; Carbamazepine; Humans; Limit of Detection; Biosensing Techniques; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Nanoparticles; Anticonvulsants; 0301 Analytical Chemistry; 0399 Other Chemical Sciences; Analytical Chemistry; 3401 Analytical chemistry
Subjects:	R Medicine > RS Pharmacy and materia medica
Divisions:	Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences
Publisher:	Royal Society of Chemistry
Date of acceptance:	27 February 2026
Date of first compliant Open Access:	1 September 2026
Date Deposited:	01 Sep 2026 10:54
Last Modified:	01 Sep 2026 10:54
DOI or ID number:	10.1039/d5an01268f
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/29256

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