Molecularly imprinted polymer integrated disposable pipette extraction method for rapid quantification of melatonin and metabolites in breast milk

Abstract

Background Melatonin, a hormone synthesized by the pineal gland, exhibits immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, antioxidant, and chronobiological properties. In breast milk, melatonin concentration has been related to influencing neonatal sleep patterns and colic frequency. However, this correlation had not been fully explored due to the difficulty of ensuring real melatonin concentration in this complex sample. Given the low concentrations of melatonin and its metabolites in breast milk (1.5–215 pg mL−1), highly sensitive techniques such as liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) are required. However, the complexity of the matrix usually demands efficient sample preparation techniques, so disposable pipette extraction (DPX) stands out. Results To enhance the selectivity of DPX, molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were applied as the extraction phase due to their ability to create selective binding sites for target molecules. In this study, a DPX-MIP/LC-MS method was developed to determine melatonin and its metabolites in breast milk. To this aim, different monomers were evaluated for the synthesis of MIP, and scrutinized for improved MIP selectivity, where 1-vinylmizadol (1-Vn) presented higher extraction efficiency and was selected as DPX extraction phase. The DPX-MIP method was optimized using both univariate and multivariate approaches. The optimized method exhibited good linearity, minimal matrix interference, recoveries varying from 87.0 % to 111.2 %, and precision between 2.9 % and 14.0 %. Significance By incorporating MIPs into a miniaturized and automated format, the DPX-MIP/LC-MS method provides a rapid, selective, and sustainable solution for analyzing trace levels of melatonin in breast milk. This approach reduces sample preparation time and enhances selectivity and sensitivity in LC-MS analysis. Overall, the method highlights the potential of MIP-based sample preparation as a powerful strategy for trace-level determination in complex biological matrices.