Electrochemical Sensor for Tryptophan Determination Based on Copper-cobalt Hexacyanoferrate Film Modified Graphite Electrode.docVIP

Sensors 2007, 7, 2446-2457 sensors ISSN 1424-8220 ? 2007 by MDPI /sensors Full Research Paper Electrochemical Sensor for Tryptophan Determination Based on Copper-cobalt Hexacyanoferrate Film Modified Graphite Electrode Yingju Liu * and Li Xu Department of Applied Chemistry, College of Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: liuyingju@ Received: 3 July 2007 / Accepted: 15 October 2007 / Published: 19 October 2007 Abstract: In this work, the development of a tryptophan sensor and its application to milk are described. The mixed metal (copper and cobalt) hexacynoferrates are electrodeposited on the graphite electrode, and this film exhibits an electrocatalytic activity towards for the oxidation of tryptophan. The experimental conditions, including the scan cycles, the ratio of copper(II) and cobalt(II), pH value, applied potential, are investigated in detail. At the optimal conditions, the eletctrocatalytic response is a linear relationship with the concentration of tryptophan in the range of 10 μM and 900 μM, with a detection limit of about 6 μM. This modified electrode was also successfully used to detect the tryptophan concentration in milk. Keywords: tryptophan, copper-cobalt hexacyanoferrate, electrocatalysis, sensor 1. Introduction Determination of amino acids is important in various fields of research, particularly in food, soil, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries [1-3]. For example, tryptophan is an important amino acid owing to its crucial roles in biological systems. It is a vital constituent of proteins and indispensable in human nutrition for establishing and maintaining a positive nitrogen balance [4]. It is also an essential amino acid for brain functions and neuronal regulatory mechanisms. Therefore, the detection of tryptophan is very important. Many