Effects of Heavy-Atom Salts on the Luminescence Properties of Tetrol I-1 on α-Cyclodextrin/Salt Matrices

Abstract

Benzo(a)pyrene [B(a)P] is one of the most widely studied polyaromatic hydrocarbons. In the human body and in lower animals, B(a)P can become chemically bonded to DNA. Tetrols are the products obtained from the hydrolysis of B(a)P-DNA adducts. It has been proposed that the amount of tetrols detected in human body fluids can be used as a measure of the amount of B(a)P-DNA adducts present in the body. The effects of several heavy-atom salts on the solid-matrix fluorescence and phosphorescence properties of the tetrols were investigated. TINO₃ and TIF were very useful in enhancing the room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) of the tetrols. For tetrol I-1 on 1:1:8 α-cyclodextrin:TlNO₃: NaNO₃, the limit of detection was 0.38 femtomole/mg. The RTP approach with the 1:1:8 α-cycIodextrin:TlNO₃:NaNO₃ matrix would be useful for detecting subfemtomole quantities of the tetrols of B(a)P-DNA adducts from biological samples.