Utilization of Catalytic Hydrogen Evolution in Electrochemical Analysis of Nucleic Acids

Catalysis of hydrogen evolution (CHE) at mercury in the presence of proteins was discoverd shortly after the introduction of polarography. In contrast, unmodified nucleic acids have not been reported to produce distinct signals due to the CHE to date. Chemically modified nucleic acids bearing certain extrinsic groups produce analytically useful signals due to hydrogen evloution catalyzed by the respective modifications. These species include (a) transition metal complexes, and (b) non-metal catalytically active organic moieties. In addition, the CHE has been reported to be invoved in guanine reduction process at the mercury-based electrodes.