Abstract
The efficiency of photosensitization of methyl linoleate (ML) oxidation by N-acetyl-L-trypophan(NAT) and 3-methyl indole(scatole) was markedly enhanced by increased concentration of ML in ethanol solution. The fluorescence intensities of sensitizers were observed to be quenched by ML, indicating that ML interacts with the indole excited singlet state. The inhibition of photosensitization by azide demonstrated a possible role of singlet oxygen in the photosensitization. The steady state kinetic treatment of azide inhibition of photosensitization was expected to show linear increase of reciprocal yield of ML oxidation product vs. reciprocal ML concentration at constant azide concentration, but the actual slope was nonlinear. This indicates another competing reaction involved in the photosensitization, As a possible competing reaction, electron transfer from ML to the excited sensitizer was proposed, since the measured fluorescence quenching rate constant closely resembled electron transfer rate constant determined from ML concentration dependence of oxidation product formation.