Uric acid quenches singlet oxygen physically or reacts with it, but the oxidation product has not been previously characterized. The present study determined that the product is parabanic acid, which was confirmed by LC/TOFMS analysis. Parabanic acid was stable at acidic pH (<5.0), but hydrolyzed to oxaluric acid at neutral or alkaline pH. The total yields of parabanic acid and oxaluric acid based on consumed uric acid were ~100% in clean singlet oxygen production systems such as UVA irradiation of Rose Bengal and thermal decomposition of 3-(1,4-dihydro-1,4-epidioxy-4-methyl-1-naphthyl)propionic acid. However, the ratio of the amount of uric acid consumed to the total amount of singlet oxygen generated was less than 1/180, indicating that most of the singlet oxygen was physically quenched. The total yields of parabanic acid and oxaluric acid were high in the uric acid oxidation systems with hydrogen peroxide plus hypochlorite or peroxynitrite. They became less than a few percent in peroxyl radical-, hypochlorite- or peroxynitrite-induced oxidation of uric acid. These results suggest that parabanic acid could be an in vivo probe of singlet oxygen formation because of the wide distribution of uric acid in human tissues and extracellular spaces. In fact, sunlight exposure significantly increased human skin levels of parabanic acid.

Five novel phosphate-type hybrid surfactants, C m F 2m+1 C 6 H 4 CH[OPO 2 (OC 6 H 5 )Na]C n H 2n+1 (FmPHnPPhNa: m = 4, 6, 8; n = 3, 5; C 6 H 4 = p-phenylene, C 6 H 5 = phenyl), have been synthesized. When compared with sulfate-type hybrid surfactants, C m F 2m+1 C 6 H 4 CH(O-SO 3 Na)C n H 2n+1 (C 6 H 4 = p-phenylene), the new hybrid surfactants are found to have comparable abilities to lower surface tension of water. The critical micelle concentrations of FmPHnPPhNa follow Klevens rule and their occupied areas per molecule increase with increasing m and n. Calcium hydroxyapatite (CaHAp) pellets modified with FmPH3PPhNa gives high hydrophobic and lipophobic surfaces. The hybrid surfactants are expected as new dental reagents for oral hygiene. #

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