Critical Challenges and Future Directions of Electrosynthesized Molecularly Imprinted Polymers for Bacterial Sensing

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have gained attention as synthetic receptors for electrochemical sensing due to their mechanical and operational robustness, low cost, and tunable selectivity. Although extensively explored for small-molecule detection, their application in bacterial sensing remains limited. Whole-cell bacterial imprinting presents significant challenges arising from the large size, structural complexity, motility, and limited accessibility of surface functional groups of bacteria. These factors hinder efficient imprinting, template removal, and rebinding, often leading to poor selectivity and reproducibility. In addition, MIP films deposited on conventional electrodes, such as glassy carbon, frequently suffer from mechanical fragility, including cracking and delamination, which hampers long-term performance and point-of-care applicability. Many existing systems rely on indirect redox-probe-based detection, further complicating selectivity and reproducibility and underscoring the need for direct electrochemical readout strategies. This review critically evaluates the challenges associated with electrosynthesized MIPs for bacterial sensing, focusing on imprinting efficiency, template removal, rebinding, and electrode preparation. Future perspectives are outlined, including artificial intelligence-assisted MIP design, printed electronics, advanced electrosynthesis and template removal strategies, hybrid transduction mechanisms, and integration with smartphones and microfluidics for practical, field-deployable bacterial biosensors.