A Redox-Switchable Colorimetric Probe for “Naked-Eye” Detection of Hypochlorous Acid and Glutathione

• Main Authors: Qian Han, Fang Zhou, Yue Wang, Huan Feng, Qingtao Meng, Zhiqiang Zhang, Run Zhang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019-07-01
• Series: Molecules
• Subjects: redox-switchable; hypochlorous acid; glutathione; colorimetric; detection; water samples
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/24/13/2455

We report the development of a new colorimetric probe (<b>L-ol</b>) for investigations of the redox process regulated by hypochlorous acid (HOCl) and glutathione (GSH). The HOCl/GSH redox-switching cycle process was investigated in detail by UV-vis absorption spectroscopy, colorimetric analysis assay and high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS). The switchable absorbance responses were attributed to the HOCl-induced oxidation of the <i>p</i>-methoxyphenol unit to the benzoquinone derivative (<b>L-one</b>) and sequential reduction of <b>L-one</b> to hydroquinone (<b>L-ol&#8217;</b>) by GSH. In phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) buffer, the absorbance of <b>L-ol</b> at 619 nm underwent a remarkable bathochromic-shift, accompanied by a color change from pale yellow to blue in the presence of HOCl. With further addition of GSH, the absorbance of <b>L-one</b> exclusively recovered to the original level. Meanwhile, the blue-colored solution returned to the naive pale yellow color in the presence of GSH. The detection limits for HOCl and GSH were calculated to be 6.3 and 96 nM according to the IUPAC criteria. Furthermore, <b>L-ol</b>-loaded chromatography plates have been prepared and successfully applied to visualize and quantitatively analyze HOCl in several natural waters.