Zwitterionic molecularly imprinted polymeric chains were tethered to the sol-gel modified graphite electrode in brush pattern of high density, for the quantitative estimation of creatine at trace level, without any cross reactivity, in real samples. The modified electrode was activated by preanodization at +1.4 V (vs. saturated calomel electrode) for the fast ion-exchange recapture of creatine. under mild basic condition (pH 7.1). The detection limit was as low as 1.3 mu g mL(-1) (signal/noise = 3) employing differential pulse, cathodic stripping technique. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.