Bromine (Br)-modified magnetic Zr metal organic framework for highly efficient adsorption and detection of sugar phosphates in biological samples

Background The enrichment of sugar phosphates (SPx) from complex biological samples was of significant importance for elucidating their roles in physiological and pathological processes. However, the detection of SPx faced numerous challenges due to the high structural similarity among its isomers, its extremely low abundance within cells, the complexity of biological samples, and the inefficiency and cumbersome nature of traditional enrichment methods. Therefore, there was an urgent need to develop an efficient enrichment technique, leveraging the advantages of magnetic separation to achieve precise detection of sugar phosphates in biological samples. Results A novel magnetic material, Fe 3 O 4 @UiO-66-Br, was synthesized for efficient and convenient enrichment of SPx in biological samples. The material exhibited a high specific surface area (225.08 m 2 /g) and strong magnetism (33.61 emu·g −1 ). Only 600 μg of Fe 3 O 4 @UiO-66-Br was required to completely adsorb five types of SPx within 4 min. The adsorption process was pH-tolerant and can be accomplished simply by standing. Kinetic, thermodynamic, and isotherm studies revealed favorable adsorption properties, characterized as spontaneous and endothermic monolayer chemisorption. Mechanistic studies using XPS, FT-IR, and DFT identified multiple interactions, including coordination, hydrogen bonding, and electrostatic interactions. The analytical protocol featured a wide linear range (0.01–10000 ng/mL), low detection limits (0.002–0.01 ng/mL), high precision (RSD<13.21 %), and accuracy (80.05 %–116.41 %). Significance The protocol was successfully applied to real blood samples, demonstrating the potential of magnetic MOFs for SPx adsorption and detection. This novel material and protocol provided an efficient approach for enriching and detecting trace SPx in complex biological matrices, facilitating further studies on their roles in physiological and pathological processes.