An Auto‐Inductive Cascade for the Optical Sensing of Thiols in Aqueous Media: Application in the Detection of a VX Nerve Agent Mimic

Abstract

A new auto‐inductive protocol employs a Meldrum's‐acid‐based conjugate acceptor (1) as a latent source of thiol for signal amplification, as well as optical detection of thiols. The auto‐induction is initiated by a thiol‐disulfide exchange that leads to the generation of β‐mercaptoethanol, which in turn decouples the conjugate acceptor to release more thiols, resulting in a self‐propagating cycle that continues until all the conjugate acceptor is consumed. Using 1 in a two‐step integrated protocol yields a rapid, sensitive, and precise diagnostic assay for the ultratrace quantitation of a thiophosphate nerve agent surrogate.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Jul 03, 2017
Source ID
10.1002/anie.201704472

Entities

People

  • Eric Anslyn
  • Xiaolong Sun

Organizations

  • Defense Threat Reduction Agency
  • Robert A. Welch Foundation
  • University of Texas at Austin

Tags

Readers

  • Electrochemical Surface Science
  • Environmental Engineering.
  • Optical Physics and Photonics.