CHED 840 |
| Kathy M Loftis, Kevin O'Shea, and Kathleen Rein. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International University, 11200 S.W. 8th Street, Miami, FL 33155 |
| Toxins produced by cyanobacteria are released into potable water sources upon cell lysis. Human illnesses and deaths have been attributed to microcystin contaminated water. Present water treatment processes are ineffective or unreliable in removing cyanobacterial toxins. Hence, we are exploring the photochemical process for the degradation of microcystins. Microcystins have been found to degrade under ultraviolet irradiation, yet there are no reports on their degradation by singlet oxygen. We report herein the study of photochemically generated singlet oxygen with microcystins. Our results indicate the degradation is highly dependent on the singlet oxygen sensitizer. The charged rose bengal leads to minimal degradation while tetraphenylporphine, a neutral species, leads to rapid degradation of microcystins. The reactions of singlet oxygen with microcystins may also be important in the environmental fate and toxicity of the microcystin oxidation products. Detailed kinetic and product studies are underway. |
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Undergraduate Research Poster Session: Organic Chemistry
2:00 PM-4:00 PM, Monday, March 29, 2004 Anaheim Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster
Division of Chemical Education |