Reduction of Keratin Fibers with Other Reagents

To summarize and to compare the two processes of thioglycolate and sulfite reduction of hair, we find that the thiol reacts with hair, producing cysteine residues in the following manner  

On the other hand, sulfite reacts with the disulfide bonds in hair to produce mercaptan and Bunte salt  

Reduction of Keratin Fibers with Other Reagents 

In addition to mercaptans and sulfites, compounds that have been used for nucleophilic cleavage of the disulfide bond in hair and/or wool fiber are sulfides, hydroxide, water (steam), a phosphine, borohydride, dithionite (hydrosulfite), and sulfoxylate. The interactions of some of these compounds with the disulfide bond in hair are described next. 

Salts of hydrogen sulfide are extremely potent reducing agents for hair and have been used in depilatory compositions [53]. In a sense, salts of hydro- 

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Reduction of Keratin Fibers with Other Reagents 125... 

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