Voltammetry at a Hanging Mercury Drop Electrode as a Tool for the Study of the Interaction of Double-stranded DNA with Genotoxic 4-Nitrobiphenyl

Differential pulse voltammetry, cyclic voltammetry, alternating current voltammetry, and chronocoulometry at a hanging mercury drop electrode (HMDE) and DNA modified HMDE were used for the study of the interaction of 4-nitrobiphenyl (4-NBP) with double-stranded DNA and for the detection of DNA damage caused by its interaction with 4-NBP. Moreover, the interaction of DNA with intermediates of the 4-NBP reduction and with 4-aminobiphenyl, a metabolite of 4-NBP, was investigated. The mechanism of the electrochemical reduction of 4-NBP was investigated using CV, too. It was found that the reduction of 4-NBP is controlled by both diffusion and adsorption. The rate constant of the reduction and the diffusion coefficient were calculated as well.