Graphene Oxide-Regulated Calcium Alginate Molecularly Imprinted Hydrogel Films with Enhanced Physico-Mechanical Properties and Selective Protein Recognition.
- 1State Key Laboratory of Advanced Separation Membrane Materials, School of Material Science and Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, China.
- 2School of Integrated Circuit Science and Engineering, Advanced Materials and Printed Electronics Center, Tianjin University of Technology, Tianjin 300384, China.
Abstract
Calcium alginate (CaAlg) hydrogels are attractive matrices for molecular imprinting because of their biocompatibility and functionalizability, but their limited mechanical stability and excessive swelling can compromise the integrity and accessibility of molecular recognition sites. In this study, graphene oxide (GO) was incorporated into CaAlg to regulate the physicochemical properties of the hydrogel and construct a bovine serum albumin (BSA)-imprinted hydrogel interface for selective protein recognition and electrochemical sensing. The incorporation of GO effectively reduced swelling and enhanced the mechanical stability of the hydrogel, with the 1 wt.% GO-containing film exhibiting a tensile strength of 1921.15 kPa and the highest fracture energy. The resulting molecularly imprinted hydrogel showed a BSA adsorption capacity of 55.21 mg g⁻¹ and an imprinting efficiency of 3.68, while preferential recognition of BSA over other proteins was observed. After integration with a carbon electrode, template removal and BSA rebinding produced distinguishable electrochemical responses, with an electrochemical imprinting ratio of approximately 6.5. These results demonstrate that GO can simultaneously regulate the structural stability and molecular recognition behavior of CaAlg-based imprinted hydrogels. The proposed hydrogel interface provides a promising material platform for selective protein recognition and electrochemical sensing, with potential applications in biomolecular detection and functional biointerfaces.
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BibTeX
@article{wang2026graphene,
title = {{Graphene Oxide-Regulated Calcium Alginate Molecularly Imprinted Hydrogel Films with Enhanced Physico-Mechanical Properties and Selective Protein Recognition.}},
author = {Siyu Wang and Haojie Li and Ying Zhang and Zhengchun Yang and Kongyin Zhao},
journal = {Gels (Basel, Switzerland)},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/gels12100913},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42929948},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Graphene Oxide-Regulated Calcium Alginate Molecularly Imprinted Hydrogel Films with Enhanced Physico-Mechanical Properties and Selective Protein Recognition.
AU - Siyu Wang
AU - Haojie Li
AU - Ying Zhang
AU - Zhengchun Yang
AU - Kongyin Zhao
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/10
JO - Gels (Basel, Switzerland)
DO - 10.3390/gels12100913
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42929948
AB - Calcium alginate (CaAlg) hydrogels are attractive matrices for molecular imprinting because of their biocompatibility and functionalizability, but their limited mechanical stability and excessive swelling can compromise the integrity and accessibility of molecular recognition sites. In this study, graphene oxide (GO) was incorporated into CaAlg to regulate the physicochemical properties of the hydrogel and construct a bovine serum albumin (BSA)-imprinted hydrogel interface for selective protein recognition and electrochemical sensing. The incorporation of GO effectively reduced swelling and enhanced the mechanical stability of the hydrogel, with the 1 wt.% GO-containing film exhibiting a tensile strength of 1921.15 kPa and the highest fracture energy. The resulting molecularly imprinted hydrogel showed a BSA adsorption capacity of 55.21 mg g⁻¹ and an imprinting efficiency of 3.68, while preferential recognition of BSA over other proteins was observed. After integration with a carbon electrode, template removal and BSA rebinding produced distinguishable electrochemical responses, with an electrochemical imprinting ratio of approximately 6.5. These results demonstrate that GO can simultaneously regulate the structural stability and molecular recognition behavior of CaAlg-based imprinted hydrogels. The proposed hydrogel interface provides a promising material platform for selective protein recognition and electrochemical sensing, with potential applications in biomolecular detection and functional biointerfaces.
SN - 2310-2861
ER -