Monoliths

摘要

The present invention relates to a monolith for processing fluid samples, and methods of making and using the monolith. The monolith can contain certain monomers or combinations of monomers that can be polymerized to give a polymeric monolith that can efficiently self-wick fluid. The self-wicking polymeric monolith can be used as a convenient tool for point of care on site diagnostics and analytics. The monolith is easily stored and transported, comparatively cost-efficient to make, permits good detection of analyte molecules and is readily functionalizable by impregnation of and/or covalently grafting additional chemical moieties to either the whole monolith or in zones.

主权项

1. A method of fabricating a self-wicking monolith for processing a fluid sample, the method comprising:
providing at least one hydrophilic monomer and at least one linker monomer, the at least one linker monomer having two polymerizable groups spaced apart by a linker comprising at least one —C(R)2O— group; wherein each R is individually a hydrogen or an organic group; obtaining a polymerizable composition by combining the at least one hydrophilic monomer and the at least one linker monomer in a porogenic solvent; obtaining at least one additional polymerizable composition containing the at least one monomer and the at least one linker monomer in the porogenic solvent, wherein the polymerizable composition and the at least one additional polymerizable composition vary in at least one of:
the at least one hydrophilic monomer and/or the at least one linker monomer identity;the total non-linker monomer to the at least one linker monomer ratio;the porogenic solvent;the concentration of the at least one hydrophilic monomer, the at least one linker monomer, and a further monomer, if present, in the solution;the presence and identity of one or more further monomers, orthe presence and identity of an initiator; providing the polymerizable composition and the at least one additional polymerizable composition at different locations within a mold prior to polymerization; and polymerizing the polymerizable composition and the at least one additional polymerizable composition at the same time to form the self-wicking monolith, such that the self-wicking monolith comprises a plurality of zones, wherein different zones have different wicking properties and/or chemical properties.