Monolayer Molecular Recognition Sites as a Basis for Biosensor Development

Abstract

All molecular recognition systems must possess some, at least, of the three important attributes essential for their functionality; these are: complementarity of size, shape and chemical affinity. Present efforts to develop molecular recognition systems by chemists have relied largely on production of compounds which operate on the basis of the functional complementarity of specific interactions between chemical entities. The more biological approaches (i.e. biomimetic enzyme systems) must stress, as well, the size- and shape- topospecificty of the system. In both cases, however, extensive and involved synthesis of the system is usually required. Described here are molecular recognition systems based on simple monolayer constructions, applicable to a wide range of molecules and capable of being prepared by simple procedures. These systems rely exclusively on the size/shape topospecificity of the target and template molecule, although future efforts will be directed quite probably to the problem of specific chemical group interactions between guest molecules and surrounding matrix material.