hydrogen peroxide

Overview

Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a small, reactive oxygen species that is widely studied in chemistry, biology, and medicine. In living systems, it functions as both a signaling molecule and a mediator of oxidative stress. At low to moderate levels, H2O2 participates in redox signaling; at higher levels, it can damage lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids and contribute to inflammation, tissue injury, and cell death. Because of this dual role, hydrogen peroxide is frequently used experimentally to model oxidative stress in cells and tissues, including neuronal, osteoblastic, and cardiomyocyte systems.

In biomedical research, hydrogen peroxide is also a central substrate and trigger in many catalytic and responsive platforms. Enzyme systems such as Glucose oxidase generate H2O2, while nanozymes, peroxidase-like materials, and Fenton-active metals use it to produce more reactive species such as hydroxyl radicals. This makes H2O2 important in cancer therapy, antibacterial treatment, wound healing, biosensing, and oxidative-stress biology. It is also a key biomarker in pathological states such as cancer, inflammation, diabetic wounds, and other redox-imbalanced conditions.

Focus of Latest Publications

Recent publications have continued to position hydrogen peroxide as a central analyte, reactant, or therapeutic intermediate in biosensing and redox-based biomedical systems. Several studies used H2O2 as the signal-generating species in colorimetric, fluorescent, electrochemical, or SERS platforms, typically by coupling it to nanozyme or catalytic reactions. For example, L-arginine modified Cu-CuFe2O4 nanoparticles were used in portable kits for glucose and cholesterol detection, where the enzyme-generated H2O2 was converted into hydroxyl radicals that oxidized TMB to produce a blue signal proportional to analyte concentration. Similarly, hydrogel microbead-confined Au@Pt nanozymes enabled robust SERS detection of H2O2 in complex biological systems, and iron-doped carbon dots were used in a uric acid assay in which uricase-generated H2O2 triggered Fenton-based fluorescence quenching. Another immunoassay study reported that d-histidine-modified PtPdOs nanozymes showed enhanced H2O2 adsorption and catalytic activity, improving sensitivity in ELISA and lateral flow formats.

Hydrogen peroxide also featured prominently as a therapeutic substrate in cancer and infection-related nanomedicine. Multiple studies exploited endogenous H2O2 in the tumor microenvironment to drive Fenton-type or peroxidase-like reactions that generate hydroxyl radicals and amplify oxidative damage. Examples include a ferrocene-containing microbial nanohybrid that catalyzed H2O2 into hydroxyl radicals to promote ferroptosis and cGAS-STING activation, a CaO2-powered nanomotor that released H2O2 to support amplified Fenton chemistry and cuproptosis-related ROS injury, and a drug-free mitochondria-accumulative nanoplatform in which CaO2 supplied H2O2 to initiate chemodynamic therapy alongside calcium overload and photothermal effects. In another design, a DNA logic circuit-equipped redox amplifier increased intracellular H2O2 by inhibiting catalase mRNA, thereby sustaining Fenton chemistry and self-amplifying hydroxyl radical production. Related work in infected wound and diabetic infection models used copper-based or iron-based nanoassemblies to exploit endogenous H2O2 for antibacterial ROS generation and tissue repair.

Other studies focused on modulating H2O2 levels rather than detecting or consuming them. A catalase-engineered black phosphorus nanoplatform was designed to convert endogenous H2O2 into oxygen, relieving hypoxia in liver cancer and improving photo-/radiotherapy responses. An endoplasmic reticulum-directed chemodynamic strategy similarly leveraged the H2O2-rich ER environment to induce localized ROS bursts, ER stress, and immunogenic cell death. In bladder cancer, MnO2-based nanomotors were reported to degrade elevated H2O2 and glutathione in the tumor microenvironment while releasing therapeutic cargo and immunostimulatory components. Beyond oncology, one contact lens care study compared the neutralization and disinfection kinetics of a hydrogen peroxide-based solution with povidone iodine, reflecting continued interest in H2O2 as a clinically relevant disinfectant.

A smaller set of publications addressed H2O2 in broader oxidative stress biology and materials chemistry. Geopropolis extracts were tested for protection against H2O2-induced DNA damage in a UV/H2O2 plasmid assay and showed antioxidant effects in Caenorhabditis elegans. In materials research, a vinylene-linked covalent organic framework was engineered for H2O2 photosynthesis, demonstrating high photocatalytic H2O2 production and aerobic oxidation activity. Together, these studies highlight hydrogen peroxide as a versatile target in recent work spanning diagnostics, antimicrobial systems, cancer therapy, oxidative stress protection, and photocatalytic synthesis.

Key Publications

• NEWJul Portable kits based on L-arginine modified Cu-CuFe2O4 with superior peroxidase-like activity for colorimetric detection of cholesterol and glucose in human serum. (Mikrochimica acta, 2026, PMID 42384177): "Among the enzyme-like reactions, Cu-CuFe2O4@L-Arg catalyzes the conversion of H2O2 into hydroxyl radicals (•OH), which subsequently oxidize the TMB substrate to yield a blue-colored product."
• NEWJul Comparison of neutralization and disinfection kinetics in povidone iodine- and hydrogen peroxide-based soft contact lens care solutions. (Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry, 2026, PMID 42374155): "one based on 3.42% hydrogen peroxide"
• NEWJun Biomimetic catalase-engineered black phosphorus nanosheets enhance photo-/radio-therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma. (Biomedical materials (Bristol, England), 2026, PMID 42306934): "This multifunctional construct efficiently catalyzed endogenous hydrogen peroxide into oxygen, thereby relieving intratumoral hypoxia."
• NEWJun An endoplasmic reticulum-directed ROS burst strategy powered by H2O2 abundance for chemodynamic/immuno tumor therapy. (Chemical communications (Cambridge, England), 2026, PMID 42300038): "The endoplasmic reticulum (ER), enriched with H2O2, offers an ideal subcellular site to overcome the limited intracellular H2O2 supply in conventional chemodynamic therapy."
• NEWJun Hydrogel Microbead-Confined Nanozyme-SERS Sensor for Robust Detection of Hydrogen Peroxide in Complex Biological Systems. (ACS sensors, 2026, PMID 42263297): "Herein, we present a hydrogel-confined nanozyme-SERS sensing microbead platform that enables sensitive and interference-resistant detection of H2O2, a central oxidative biomarker of inflammation."
• Jun An Engineered Microbial Nanohybrid for Enhanced Ferroptosis Immunotherapy via Hypoxia-Responsive Hydrogen Sulfide Generation and Mitophagy Inhibition. (ACS nano, 2026, PMID 42246518): "...catalyzed the Fenton reaction to convert hydrogen peroxide into hydroxyl radicals, leading to ferroptosis and the release of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)."
• Jun Machine Learning-Assisted Surface Ligand Engineering Strategy for Enhanced Sensitivity of Immunoassay Platform. (Analytical chemistry, 2026, PMID 42246701): "d-histidine modification enhanced the adsorption capacity for hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and lowered the activation energy barrier, thereby drastically increasing the maximum reaction rate (Vmax)."
• May CaO2-Powered Nanomotors with Enhanced Cellular Uptake and Lysosomal Escape for Cuproptosis and Reactive Oxygen Species-Mediated Synergistic Cancer Therapy. (ACS applied materials & interfaces, 2026, PMID 42126988): "In acidic tumor microenvironments, sustained release of Ca2+, Cu2+, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and hesperidin occurs, triggering a cascade of therapeutic effects."
• May A Polysaccharide-Based Iron-Curcumin Carbon Dot Hydrogel Dressing with Photothermal and Nanozyme Catalysis for Infected Wound Healing. (ACS applied materials & interfaces, 2026, PMID 42099268): "The FeCDs nanozyme exhibits peroxidase-like activity, catalyzing the conversion of hydrogen peroxide into bactericidal hydroxyl radicals."
• May Self-Cascading Copper-Based Nanoassemblies Trigger Bacterial Cuproptosis-Like Death and Promote Wound Healing for Diabetic Drug-Resistant Bacterial Infections. (ACS nano, 2026, PMID 42054707): "The POD-like activity of CDs catalyzes the endogenous H2O2, inducing membrane lipid peroxidation and enhancing cell membrane permeability, which facilitates copper influx."