Development of molecular imprinted nanosensor for determination of tobramycin in pharmaceuticals and foods

In this study, we developed quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) nanosensor for the real-time detection of tobramycin (TOB). Firstly, the modification of gold surface of QCM chip was performed by self-assembling monolayer formation of allyl mercaptane to introduce polymerizable double bonds on the chip surface. Then, TOB imprinted poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate–methacryloylamidoglutamic acid) [p(HEMA–MAGA)] film was generated on the gold surface. The nonmodified and TOB-imprinted p(HEMA–MAGA) surfaces were characterized by using atomic force microscopy (AFM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, ellipsometry and contact angle measurements. The proposed method was validated according to the ICH guideline. The linearity range and the detection limit (S/N=3) were obtained as 1.7×10−11–1.5×10−10 M and 5.7×10−12 M, respectively. The developed method was applied to pharmaceuticals, and food samples such as chicken egg white and milk extract for the determination of TOB. In addition, association kinetics analysis and isotherm models were applied to the data to explain the adsorption process that took place.