Complexation of L-lactate with boronic acids: a solution and holographic analysis

Boronic acids have been used as receptors for the detection of diols and alpha-hydroxy acids. The incorporation of 3-acrylamide phenyl boronic acid (3-APB) into a hydrogel generates a suitably responsive and fully reversible holographic sensor for L-lactate. However, it was also found that the use of 3-APB resulted in the sensor being responsive towards a number of other compounds containing two hydroxy groups. This report details the further investigation into the reaction between L-lactate and three boronic acid-based receptors, both in the holograms and in solution, in order to establish the mechanism of binding. A novel boronate receptor is proposed based on this understanding.