In current study the question is how the tail lengths of alkyl (hydrophobicity) in n-alkyl sulfates homologues and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and so heme degradation pattern of hemoglobin (Hb) correlate.
It was found that during Hb reaction with different concentrations of n-alkyl sulfates some fluorescent degradation species were formed. The existence of these fluorescence bands are a clear indication that the heme is being degraded. The detection of the fluorescent products suggested that the heme degradation may involve the reaction of ROS with Hb. To address this point a chemiluminescence study was performed. It was shown that the hydrogen peroxide, produced during this interaction, is responsible for heme degradation. To have a quantitative insight into the amounts of hydrogen peroxide produced, a chemiluminescence calibration curve was obtained. In addition to above mentioned tests, the fluorescent spectrum of species produced via heme degradation were analyzed using chemometric methods to find the number and amount of species. It was concluded that the increase of hydrophobic chain length correlates with amount of both ROS production and heme degradation.