Issue 39, 2015

(Un)suitability of the use of pH buffers in biological, biochemical and environmental studies and their interaction with metal ions – a review

Abstract

The use of buffers to maintain the pH within a desired range is a very common practice in chemical, biochemical and biological studies. Among them, zwitterionic N-substituted aminosulfonic acids, usually known as Good’s buffers, although widely used, can complex metals and interact with biological systems. The present work reviews, discusses and updates the metal complexation characteristics of thirty one commercially available buffers. In addition, their impact on biological systems is also presented. The influences of these buffers on the results obtained in biological, biochemical and environmental studies, with special focus on their interaction with metal ions, are highlighted and critically reviewed. Using chemical speciation simulations, based on the current knowledge of the metal–buffer stability constants, a proposal of the most adequate buffer to employ for a given metal ion is presented.

Graphical abstract: (Un)suitability of the use of pH buffers in biological, biochemical and environmental studies and their interaction with metal ions – a review

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
28 Nov 2014
Accepted
10 Mar 2015
First published
13 Mar 2015

RSC Adv., 2015,5, 30989-31003

Author version available

(Un)suitability of the use of pH buffers in biological, biochemical and environmental studies and their interaction with metal ions – a review

C. M. H. Ferreira, I. S. S. Pinto, E. V. Soares and H. M. V. M. Soares, RSC Adv., 2015, 5, 30989 DOI: 10.1039/C4RA15453C

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements