Institute for Advanced Materials, Physicochemical Processes, Nanotechnology & Microsystems, National Centre for Scientific Research "Demokritos", Athens 15310, Greece.
Trends Biotechnol. 2013 Sep;31(9):515-20. doi: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2013.05.003. Epub 2013 Jun 11.
Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are 'smart materials' polymerised in the presence of a template molecule, of which they retain a chemical 'memory'. When the template molecule is extracted from the polymer, it leaves behind cavities that are complementary to it, thus making the material capable of rebinding that molecule with high affinity and selectivity. Such materials, imprinted both with small molecule and with protein templates, have been used in chromatographic, chemical, and biological sensing applications. Here, we review a variety of uses for MIPs, focusing on their recently discovered role as nucleation inducing substances for protein crystals. This discovery makes them useful tailor-made 'nucleants' to be used both for optimisation of protein crystal growth and for discovering new crystallization conditions.
分子印迹聚合物（MIPs）是一种“智能材料”，在模板分子的存在下聚合，它们保留了化学“记忆”。当模板分子从聚合物中提取出来时，它会留下与其互补的空腔，从而使材料能够以高亲和力和选择性重新结合该分子。这种材料，无论是小分子还是蛋白质模板印迹，都已被用于色谱、化学和生物传感应用。在这里，我们回顾了 MIPs 的各种用途，重点介绍了它们最近发现的作为蛋白质晶体成核诱导物质的作用。这一发现使它们成为有用的定制“成核剂”，可用于优化蛋白质晶体生长和发现新的结晶条件。
