micrometer-sized structures like spores and bacteria. Due to its
versatility in terms of functionalization (e.g., IONPs and Abs), it
seems feasible that the proposed system (Ab-modified accordingly)
may be used in the future to extract not only proteins but
bacteria or spores from different samples such as contaminated
waters, food, biological samples, etc. by using targeting of the proteins
on their wall. The versatility of PCs in terms of size, composition
of the polymer shell (e.g., ‘‘hard” or ‘‘soft” polyelectrolyte
polymers, biodegradable polymers, number of bilayers, etc.) and
functionalization (i.e., NPs in the shell, loading of different macromolecules
within the PC’s cavity and attachment of macromolecules
with affinity for different targets) makes functional PC
a suitable alternative to commonly used systems for magnetic separation
such as aggregates of IONPs.