An amobarbital molecularly imprinted microsphere for selective solid-phase extraction of phenobarbital from human urine and medicines and their determination by high-performance liquid chromatography

A 40–60 µm amobarbital molecularly imprinted microsphere, used as a solid-phase selective sorbent for extracting phenobarbital from human urine and medicines, was prepared by a suspension polymerization method. A series of binding studies was performed in order to find optimal loading, washing and eluting conditions for solid-phase extraction. Under optimal conditions, good recoveries of phenobarbital in samples were obtained. Normally, molecularly imprinted polymers, prepared in bulk, require laborious work. Significant losses occur during the procedure of grinding and washing. In this work all molecularly imprinted polymers made into microsphere could be utilized, and the cost of the template was reduced too (the price of phenobarbital is twice that of amobarbital). As the phenobarbital to be extracted was different from the template molecule amobarbital, the interference caused by template leaking could be avoided in the assay.