The presence of highly toxic acrylamide in food products such as fried potatoes and chips was confirmed by Swedish scientists from the Stockholm University. Neurotoxicity of this compound and its metabolites imposes a duty to control it by qualitative and quantitative assays. Recent findings showed that acrylamide is formed in heat-treated foods rich in asparagine and reducing sugars such as glucose. Exposing acrylamide to pH extremes results in its hydrolysis to acrylic acid and ammonia. The main objective of the work presented is the development of a new electrochemical sensor for the determination of acrylic acid in the presence of asparagine and acrylamide. We report on an intramolecular ion-channel sensor using self-assembled monolayers deposited onto gold electrodes. Macrocyclic polyamine molecules with long alkyl chains were adsorbed into the monolayer of 1-dodecanethiol on the gold surface. The signal generated due to the formation of a supramolecular complex between host and acrylic acid guest at the electrode interface was measured by Osteryoung square wave voltammetry (OSWV) with [Ru(NH3)6]3+ as an electroactive marker.
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