CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Progesterone (P4) is a steroid hormone with an important role in the reproduction process of humans and other species. When P4 is bound to its specific receptors, is able to induce pregestational effects as well as affect the activity of other steroids and drugs. Quantification of P4 is essential to ensure adequate quality control during production, to identify counterfeit products, to monitor veterinary use and to maintain patients within their therapeutic ranges, issue that is especially critical for in-vitro fertilization. Traditional determination of P4 has been performed by HPLC, GC, or immunoassays. Electrochemical biosensors represent an interesting choice due to this kind of devices can provide miniaturization, portability, and accurate progesterone determinations. Despite the outstanding progress in this field, the utility of many of these biosensors is often limited by the complexity of the detection electrode [8], its cost and/or the stability of the selected biorecognition element [9]. Aiming to address these limitations, a number of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIP) have been used for the development of P4 sensors with relevant analytical performance. MIPs are synthetic polymeric materials with molecular recognition sites that are able confer a selectivity that is similar or equal to that provided by antibodies, enzymes, DNA, or aptamers. The proposed approach represents one of the simplest and fastest routes to develop the sensors.

enviar mensaje