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Uric Acid: A Less‐than‐Perfect Probe for Singlet Oxygen
Author(s) -
Bregnhøj Mikkel,
Dichmann Lea,
McLoughlin Ciaran K.,
Westberg Michael,
Ogilby Peter R.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
photochemistry and photobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.818
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1751-1097
pISSN - 0031-8655
DOI - 10.1111/php.12971
Subject(s) - uric acid , singlet oxygen , chemistry , photochemistry , oxidative phosphorylation , absorption (acoustics) , oxygen , aqueous solution , singlet state , biochemistry , organic chemistry , excited state , optics , atomic physics , physics
Uric acid and/or its monoanion has long been used as chemical‐trapping agents to demonstrate the presence of singlet oxygen, O 2 (a 1 Δ g ), in aqueous systems. “Oxidative bleaching” of uric acid, generally monitored through changes in the uric acid absorption spectrum, is often used in support of claims for the intermediacy of O 2 (a 1 Δ g ). The bleaching of uric acid has also been used to quantify photosensitized O 2 (a 1 Δ g ) yields in selected systems. Unfortunately, experiments performed to these ends often neglect processes and phenomena that can influence the results obtained. For the present study, we experimentally examined the behavior of uric acid under a variety of conditions relevant to the photoinitiated creation and subsequent removal of O 2 (a 1 Δ g ). Although the oxidative destruction of uric acid can indeed be a useful tool in some cases, we conclude that caution must be exercised such as not to incorrectly interpret the data obtained.