Synthesis and characterization of molecularly imprinted polymer nanoparticles against porcine circovirus type 2 viral-like particles

PCV2 is a significant epidemic agricultural pathogen that causes a variety of swine diseases. PCV2 infections have significant economic impact on the swine industry, making effective strategies for rapid detection of PCV2 in pigs essential. Herein, we report on the synthesis of the so-called nano-MIPs which can be utilized for molecular recognition of PCV2. The morphology and structure of nano-MIPs were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Nano-MIPs are spherical with sizes around 120-150 nm. Binding experiments demonstrate that the fluorescence intensity of PCV2 samples decreases proportionally to increasing the concentration of nano-MIPs due to quenching, while non-imprinted polymer nanoparticles (nano-NIPs) do not affect the signal. The Stern-Volmer constant of nano-MIPs binding to PCV2 was 1.3 × 10^-3 mL/µg, whereas nano-NIPs led to 7 × 10^-5 mL/µg, i.e., 1.8 orders of magnitude lower. The detection limit for binding MIP particles to PCV2 by fluorescence measurements is 47 µg/mL. This affinity test allows for designing both direct and competitive quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) assays for PCV2 leading to QCM measurements. The QCM results show nano-MIPs binding to PCV2 immobilized on the sensor surface with appreciable reproducibility. QCM sensor characteristics reveal signal saturation above around 200 µg/mL at a response of - 354 Hz and an LOD of approximately 35 µg/mL. Nano-MIPs also show selectivity factors of 2-5 for CSFV and PRRSV probably because the three viruses have similar diameters around 50 nm.