Application of biomimetic sensors for determining sunscreens in natural and artificial aquatic environments

• Grant number: 06/07151-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: March 01, 2007
• End date: June 30, 2008
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Sanitary Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Maria Del Pilar Taboada Sotomayor
• Grantee: Luiz Fernando Moreira
• Host Institution: Pró-Reitoria Acadêmica. Universidade São Francisco (USF). Campus Bragança Paulista. Bragança Paulista , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In this project is proposed the construction and application of electrochemical biosensors based on the analytes determination of biological importance without the enzyme use. In these biomimetic sensors, as they are called, the electrode is modified with a redox substance (biomimetic catalyst) that imitates the active site of some metallo-enzyme. This new concept presents an alternative, simpler and economically cheaper for the construction of electrochemical sensors more stables and with the same selectivity offered for the conventional enzymatic biosensors. In this project will be constructed sensors based on biomimetic catalysts of the cytochrome P450 enzymes, in order to apply them in the determination of sunscreens in aquatic environments. For this, inoxidable steel, gold and glass carbon electrodes will be modified with iron (III) tetrasulfonated phtalocyanine and iron (III) chlorinated phtalocyanine which will be evaluated as biomimetic catalyst of the P450 in the determination of p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA), octhyl-dimethyl PABA and 4-methyl-benzylidene camphor (4-MBC), that they are widely used as sunscreens in commercial formulations and for which still does not exist any current law indicating its maximum limit in natural, residual and artificial waters. The choice for the mimicking of the P450, is based on the vast information in the literature of chemistry, structure and mechanism of these enzymes, and mainly, due to great variety of reactions that can be catalyzed by them, opening the possibility of analysis of the most diverse types of samples, including those considering in this research project.