Research progress of metal–organic frameworks-molecularly imprinted polymers for specific recognition

Specific recognition is the most promising property of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). The development of high-performance specific sensors is a promising technology for specific recognition. Recently, metal–organic frameworks-molecularly imprinted polymers (MOF@MIP), as a novel category of composite porous materials, have been rapidly developed in target-specific recognition applications. MOF@MIP possess several advantageous features, such as large specific surface area, synthetic tunability, sufficient surface-active sites, and specific recognition. This review briefly introduces the prevalent synthesis methods of MOF@MIP, including surface molecular imprinting, electrochemical strategy, bulk polymerization, and other methods. The principle and classification of MOF@MIP sensors are reviewed alongside their diverse applications across various domains including solid-phase extraction (SPE), pharmaceutical analysis, food testing, environmental monitoring, catalytic degradation, and other. Finally, this review outlines the prospects and future challenges associated with the development of MOF@MIP, which provides promising perspectives for the development of new MOF@MIP materials in the future.