Molecularly imprinted polymer nanospheres and encapsulated quantum dots for chemical sensing of trace mycotoxins (fungal metabolites) and biological molecules (pathogen proteins)

我的研究计划将继续开发亲和力探针，特别是分子印迹聚合物(MIP)，用于真菌毒性和生物医学应用，改善人类健康保健和动物疾病的早期诊断。与传染性海绵状脑病(TSE)相关的真菌毒素(如赭曲霉毒素A、棒曲霉毒素和DON)和异常蛋白(PrPSc)可能比人造化学品对全球公众健康和食品安全构成更严重和更明显的风险。通过使用定制的MIP的分子识别特性进行选择性预浓缩，在超痕量水平上测定任何单一的真菌毒素或PrPSc是最有希望的。对于在分子印迹聚合物上选择性预富集后同时测定几种真菌毒素或异常蛋白，毛细管电泳法和微流控技术可以提供许多分析分离的优点。我们的短期目标是制备能够特异性识别具有真菌毒性和生物医学意义的单靶化合物的新型MIP纳米球。将在几种仪器方法中使用基于MIP纳米球的方法来解决分析科学中的当代和新出现的关键挑战。我们的长期目标是与渥太华和加拿大各地的科学部门、政府实验室和联邦研究机构合作，推动基于MIP纳米球的强大设备、仪器、方法、设施和专业知识的发展，有朝一日将为真菌毒性和生物医学研究做出贡献。

My research program will continue with the development of affinity probes, especially molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs), in mycotoxic and biomedical applications for both the improvement to human health care and the early diagnosis of animal diseases. Mycotoxins (such as ochratoxin A, patulin and DON) and abnormal prion protein (PrPSc) associated with transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) probably present a more serious and demonstrable risk to public health and food safety worldwide than man-made chemicals do. The determination of any single mycotoxin or PrPSc at ultratrace levels is most promising by selective pre-concentration using the molecular recognition property of a tailor-made MIP. For the determination of several mycotoxins or abnormal proteins simultaneously after selective pre-concentration on MIPs, capillary electrophoresis and microfluidics can offer many analytical separation merits. Our short-term objective is focused on the preparation of novel MIP nanospheres which can specifically recognize single target compounds of mycotoxic and biomedical significance. Key contemporary and emerging challenges in analytical sciences will be tackled using MIP nanospheres-based methods in several instrumental approaches. Our long-term objective is escalating the development of powerful MIP nanospheres-based devices, instruments, methods, facilities and expertise that will one day contribute to mycotoxic and biomedical research in collaboration with science departments, government laboratories and federal research institutions in Ottawa and across Canada.