High-performance Liquid Chromatography Chromatograms Research Articles

Dediazoniation of 1‐naphthalenediazonium tetrafluoroborate in aqueous acid and in micellar solutions

AbstractWe have measured the rates and product yields of dediazoniation of 1‐naphthalenediazonium (1ND) tetrafluoroborate in the presence and absence of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) micellar aggregates by employing a combination of UV–vis spectroscopy and high‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) measurements. Kinetic data were obtained by a derivatization procedure with product yields were determined by HPLC. HPLC chromatograms show that in aqueous acid and in micellar solutions only one dediazoniation product is formed in significant quantities, 1‐naphthol (NOH), and the observed rate constants (kobs) are the same when 1ND loss is monitored spectrometrically and when NOH formation is monitored by HPLC. Activation parameters were obtained both in the presence and absence of SDS micellar aggregates. In both the systems, the enthalpies of activation are high and the entropies of activation are positive. The enthalpy of activation in the absence of SDS is very similar to that in the presence of SDS micelles, but the entropy of activation is lower by a factor of 4. As a consequence, SDS micelles speed up the thermal decomposition of 1ND and increase kobs by a factor of 1.5 when [SDS] = 0.02 M. In contrast, results obtained in the presence of complexing systems such as crown ethers and polyethers show significant stabilization of the parent arenediazonium ions. Kinetic and HPLC data are consistent with the heterolytic DN + AN mechanism that involves the rate‐determining fragmentation of the arenediazonium ion into a very reactive phenyl cation that reacts competitively with available nucleophiles. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 40: 301–309, 2008

Separation of Vanillin from Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch Lignin

AbstractThe separation of vanillin from the lignin of empty fruit bunch oil palm is presented in this study. The lignin was extracted from soda black liquor derived from oil palm empty fruit bunches (EFB) using 20% sulfuric acid. Nitrobenzene oxidation was carried out by adding 50 mg of dry EFB lignin into a mixture of 7 mL of 2 M NaOH and 4 mL of nitrobenzene in a 15 mL steel autoclave. The autoclave was sealed tightly with a screw cap fitted with a Teflon gasket and heated to 165°C for 3 h in a preheated thermostatic oil bath. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to determine the concentration of each compound present in the lignin. There were eight compounds detected in the HPLC chromatogram. The crystallization process was then used as a method to separate vanillin from other compounds. Based on the solubility of vanillin in acetone, 15 mL of acetone was added to the residue of the oxidized products and heated to 60°C for 10 min. A yield of 1.6% vanillin was isolated from a 50 mg lignin sample. The isolated compound was analyzed with HPLC, Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry (FT‐IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (13C‐NMR) for structural verification. The results of the characterization studies proved that the isolated compound is vanillin.

A STUDY ON THE RELATION BETWEEN ANTHOCYANIN CONTENT AND PRODUCT QUALITY: SHALGAM AS A MODEL BEVERAGE

ABSTRACT The anthocyanin content and the amount of lactic and acetic acids present in commercial shalgam samples randomly collected from domestic markets were determined both by high‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and spectral measurements. Shalgam samples produced under laboratory conditions were termed as the control group (Group I). The commercial samples were divided into three groups based on their production date: samples stored for 6–9 months as Group II; samples stored for 9–12 months as Group III; and samples stored longer than 12 months as Group IV. The HPLC chromatograms indicated that black carrot was the only source of anthocyanin present in the samples. The acylated to nonacylated anthocyanin ratio increased significantly in Group IV samples, whereas there were no significant differences among the Groups II, III and control (P < 0.05). The % polymeric color negatively correlated to the total anthocyanin content was significantly higher in Group IV samples (P < 0.05). The presence of high acetic acid content might be an indication of added pickle juice to the shalgam samples. The variance of the level of lactic acid found in commercial samples shows up as a problem of incidental enrichment of the lactic acid bacteria.PRACTICAL APPLICATIONSAnthocyanin profiles of food materials are unique. Therefore, the anthocyanin profile in a commercial beverage can be used to determine whether there is an adulteration or not. The total anthocyanin content and the ratio of acylated to nonacylated anthocyanins, together with the degree of polymerization and browning index, serve as indicators of the time–temperature history of the product. Applying first‐order degradation kinetics to the anthocyanin under question the initial hypothetical amounts of the juice bearing that anthocyanin can be evaluated.In the specific beverage investigated, shalgam, the level of lactic acid refers to the amount of bulgur used for fermentation. The amount of acetic acid and its negative correlation with the total anthocyanin content can be used as an indicator of adulteration with pickle juice.

High-performance liquid chromatographic fingerprint analysis for different origins of sea buckthorn berries

Using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), a chemical fingerprint method was developed for investigating and demonstrating the variance of flavonoids among different origins of sea buckthorn berries. Thirty-four samples were analyzed including 15 RS ( Hippophae rhamnoides ssp. sinensis) samples, 7 RY ( H. rhamnoindes ssp. yunnanensis) samples, 5 RW ( H. rhamnoides ssp. wolongensis) samples, 4 NS ( H. neurocarpa ssp. stellatopilosa) samples and 3 TI ( H. tibetana) samples. In the HPLC chromatograms, 12 compounds were identified as flavonoids, including quercetin 3- O-sophoroside-7-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3- O-sophoroside-7- O-rhamnoside, isorhamnetin 3- O-sophoroside-7- O-rhamnoside, isorhamnetin 3- O-glucoside-7- O-rhamnoside, quercetin 3- O-rutinoside, quercetin 3- O-glucoside, isorhamnetin 3- O-rutinoside, isorhamnetin 3- O-glucoside, quercetin, kaempferol 7- O-rhamnoside, kaempferol and isorhamnetin. Both correlation coefficient of similarity in chromatograms and relative peak areas of characteristic compounds were calculated for quantitative expression of the HPLC fingerprints. Our results revealed that the chromatographic fingerprint combining similarity evaluation could efficiently identify and distinguish sea buckthorn berries from different species. However, no obvious difference between RS and RY suggested that the two subspecies might have very close relationship in terms of chemotaxonomy. The established method was considered to be suitable for fingerprint analysis to check the genuine origin and control the quality of sea buckthorn berries and extracts.

The Design and Evaluation of Placebo Material for Crude Herbals: Artemisia afra Herb as a Model

Herbal materials are known to present significant challenges with regard to designing credible placebos. This study intended to demonstrate the possibility of designing placebo material for crude herbals and used Artemisia afra, a popular traditional herbal medicine in South Africa, as a model. To produce the placebo, step-wise solvent extractions were conducted on the plant leaves and the process was monitored spectrophotometrically and using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array detection. The odour and taste between the placebo and A. afra was matched by inclusion of linalool and sodium saccharin, respectively. The muscle relaxant activity of the placebo was evaluated using an isolated guinea-pig tracheal muscle preparation. The UV absorbance of the extracts and the HPLC chromatograms, showed that most of the phytochemical constituents had been removed and the placebo closely resembled the A. afra leaves. The EC(50) of the placebo and the leaves were 4846.00 and 68.49 mg/mL, respectively, which showed that not only did the A. afra leaves possess muscle relaxant activity, but that the placebo did not possess any significant activity compared with the A. afra leaves (p value 0.0001). These results demonstrated that it is possible to design credible, pharmacologically inert placebo material for crude herbals.

Evaluation of novel cationic 99mTc(I)–tricarbonyl complexes as potential radiotracers for myocardial perfusion imaging

This report describes the evaluation of three cationic (99m)Tc(I)-tricarbonyl complexes--[(99m)Tc(CO)(3)(L)](+) (L=N-methoxyethyl-N,N-bis[2-(bis(3-ethoxypropyl)phosphino)ethyl]amine (ME-PNP), N-[15-crown-5)-2-yl]-N,N-bis[2-(bis(3-ethoxypropyl)phosphino)ethyl]amine (15C5-PNP) and N-[18-crown-6)-2-yl]-N,N-bis[2-(bis(3-ethoxypropyl)phosphino)ethyl]amine (18C6-PNP))--as potential radiotracers for myocardial perfusion imaging. Biodistribution, imaging and metabolism studies were performed using Sprague-Dawley rats. It was found that bisphosphine ligands have a significant impact on the biodistribution characteristics and clearance kinetics of their cationic (99m)Tc(I)-tricarbonyl complexes. Among the three radiotracers evaluated in this study, [(99m)Tc(CO)(3)(15C5-PNP)](+) has a very high initial heart uptake and is retained in the rat myocardium for >2 h. It also shows rapid clearance from the liver and lungs. The heart/liver ratio of [(99m)Tc(CO)(3)(15C5-PNP)](+) is approximately 2.5 times better than that of (99m)Tc-sestamibi at 30 min postinjection. [(99m)Tc(CO)(3)(15C5-PNP)](+) is almost identical to (99m)TcN-DBODC5 with respect to heart uptake, heart/lung ratio and heart/liver ratio. Results from metabolism studies show that there is no significant metabolism for [(99m)Tc(CO)(3)(15C5-PNP)](+) in the urine, but it does show a small metabolite peak (<10%) in the radio high-performance liquid chromatography chromatogram of the feces sample at 120 min postinjection. Results planar imaging studies demonstrate that [(99m)Tc(CO)(3)(15C5-PNP)](+) has a much better liver clearance profile than (99m)Tc-sestamibi and might give clinically useful images of the heart as early as 30 min postinjection. [(99m)Tc(CO)(3)(15C5-PNP)](+) is a very promising candidate for more preclinical evaluations in various animal models.

Rapid isocratic HPLC quantification of metallothionein-like proteins as biomarkers for cadmium exposure in the earthworm Eisenia andrei

Metallothioneins (MTs) are regarded as sensitive biomarkers of cadmium (Cd) exposure in a number of organisms. An isocratic high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method using the fluorophore ammonium-7-fluorobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazole-4-sulfonate (SBD-F) and UV detection was developed for the quantification of MT-like proteins (MTLPs) in earthworm. This method was developed using a rabbit MT (MT-1) standard, and optimized concentrations of reagents including EDTA, SBD-F, and tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP). The fluoro-tagged MT-1 (SBD-MT) and MTLP (SBD-MTLP) co-eluted at 7.2–7.3 min retention time on HPLC chromatograms. The optimized method was applied to quantify MTLPs in earthworms exposed to increasing concentrations of Cd (0, 2.7, 26.7, and 267.5 μg g −1 of wet artificial soil) for 1–4 weeks. The amounts of MTLPs increased significantly in a dose- and time-dependent manner except in controls and in earthworms exposed to the lowest concentration of Cd. Since earthworm MTLPs are temporal- and dose-responsive to Cd exposure, they can be used as biomarkers to assess the impact of Cd contamination in soils. The method appeared to be rapid, sensitive, and suitable for direct quantification of total earthworm MTs.

Potential of a simple solid-phase extraction method coupled to analytical and bioanalytical methods for an improved determination of microcystins in algal samples

Artemia assays and protein phosphatase assays are commonly used for the screening of microcystins (MCs) in algal samples instead of the standard mouse toxicity assay. However, it has been shown that their results are often biased because of the matrix effects. To eliminate the possible interferences in the algal matrices, a new solid-phase extraction (SPE) method using silica gel as a sorbent was developed and evaluated. Results show that this SPE method could not only reduce the toxicity of the Microcystis samples towards brine shrimp by 50–80% but also eliminate 90–100% of the endogenous phosphatase activity from Spirulina and Chlorella samples, thus improving the determination of microcystins in algal samples using either of the two bioanalytical methods. The application of this SPE method as an off-line cleanup for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with UV detection is also described in this study. After SPE, the HPLC chromatograms of Microcystis samples have clear baselines that have no interferences with the analyte peaks.

An absorbance-based micro-fluidic sensor for diffusion coefficient and molar mass determinations

The H-Sensor reported herein is a micro-fluidic device compatible with flow injection analysis (FIA) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The device detects analytes at two separate off-chip absorbance flow cells, providing two simultaneous absorbance measurements. The ratio of these two absorbance signals contains analyte diffusion coefficient information. A theoretical model for the sensing mechanism is presented. The model relates the signal Ratio to analyte diffusion coefficient. The model is qualitatively evaluated by comparing theoretical and experimental signal Ratio values. Experimental signal Ratios were collected via FIA for a variety of analytes, including sodium azide, benzoic acid, amino acids, peptides, and proteins. Measuring absorbance at multiple wavelengths provides higher order data allowing the analyte signals from mixtures to be deconvolved via classical least squares (CLS). As a result of the H-Sensor providing two simultaneous signals as a function of time for each sample injection, two simulated second-order HPLC chromatograms were generated using experimental H-Sensor data. The chemometric deconvolution method referred to as the generalized rank annihilation method (GRAM) was used to demonstrate chromatographic and spectroscopic deconvolution. GRAM also provides the signal Ratio value, therefore simultaneously obtaining the analyte diffusion coefficient information during deconvolution. The two chromatograms successfully serve as the standard and unknown for the GRAM deconvolution. GRAM was evaluated on chromatograms at various chromatographic resolutions. GRAM was found to function to a chromatographic resolution at and above 0.25 with a percent quantitative error of less then 10%.

Oxidative Degradation of Bisphenol A by Fruit Homogenates

ABSTRACT: The oxidative degradation of bisphenol A (BPA) by several fruit homogenates was investigated. Their homogenates were incubated with BPA at 25 °C for 0 to 120 min, and the acetone extracts were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a photodiode array detector (200 to 650 nm). The 2 degradation products (UK-1 and UK-2) from BPA were detected on HPLC chromatograms (280 nm). UK-1 and UK-2 were identified to be 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-2-(4-ydroxyphenyl) propane, (3-OH-BPA) and 4-[1-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-isopropyl]benzene-1,2-diol, (3,3′-diOH-BPA), respectively, by HPLC-MassPectrometry (LC-MS). In the process of incubation, the peak of 3-OH-BPA attained the maximum value in the 1st 20 min, and that of 3,3′-diOH-BPA increased more slowly, attaining the maximum in 50 min. On the other hand, incubation of 3-OH-BPA (instead of BPA) with grape homogenates gave the maximum peak of 3,3′-diOH-BPA in only 10 min. 3, 3′-diOH-BPA was a polyphenol compound that contained 4 hydroxyl groups. These results suggested that BPA would be degraded (converted) to brown pigments through the compounds of 3-OH-BPA and 3, 3′-diOH-BPA in some fruit homogenates.

Analysis of urinary nucleosides. V. Identification of urinary pyrimidine nucleosides by liquid chromatography/electrospray mass spectrometry

Modified urinary nucleosides are potentially invaluable in cancer diagnosis, as they reflect altered RNA turnovers. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was combined with full-scan mass spectrometry, tandem mass spectrometry, MS(n) analysis and accurate mass measurements in order to identify pyrimidine nucleosides purified from urine. Potential nucleosides were assessed by their evident UV absorbance in the HPLC chromatogram and then further examined by the various mass spectrometric techniques. In this manner numerous pyrimidine nucleosides were identified in the urine samples from cancer patients including pseudouridine, cytidine, two methylcytidines and an acetylcytidine. Furthermore, a number of novel modified pyrimidine nucleosides were tentatively identified via critical interpretation of the combined mass spectrometric data.

Evaluation of endocrine disrupting activity of plasticizers in polyvinyl chloride tubes by estrogen receptor alpha binding assay

Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) tubing is an indispensable medical material for extracorporeal circulation therapy. However, di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP), a suspected endocrine disruptor, can be eluted from PVC, suggesting that an alternative material that does not contain DEHP is needed for clinical applications. First, we evaluated the endocrine disrupting risks of the plasticizers contained in PVC tubes by investigating their binding affinities for the human estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha). Our results revealed that, while DEHP has some binding affinity for ERalpha, neither epoxidized soybean oil nor tris(2-ethylhexyl)trimellitate (an alternative to DEHP) has any affinity for ERalpha. Second, we evaluated the endocrine disrupting risks of a tube made of newly developed plasticizer-free (PF) materials. We confirmed the presence of DEHP and detected several unidentified substances in plasma stored within the PVC tube. This plasma's competitive binding affinity for ERalpha was significantly higher than that of control plasma (P < 0.01). In contrast, the profile of plasma stored in the PF tube was similar to that of the control, both in terms of high-performance liquid chromatography chromatograms and competitive binding capacity for ERalpha, suggesting that the PF tube is biocompatible and is useful for reducing the elution of substances capable of binding to ERalpha.

HPLC and GC Methods for Determination of Lubricants and Their Evaluation in Analysis of Real Samples of Polyethylene

High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography (GC) are introduced for analysis of polymer lubricants (stearamide, oleamide and erucamide). In the HPLC method, a reverse phase octadecylsilane (ODS) column along with acetonitrile/methanol (60:40) as a mobile phase were used. Detection of analytes was performed by a UV detector at 202 nm. The analysis time was less than 8 min. In the GC method, polar capillary column and flame ionization detector (FID) were used for separations and detection, respectively. The analysis time by GC was longer than HPLC and was about 30 min. Limits of detection, linear range and repeatability of both methods are similar, but determination of oleamide in real samples by HPLC method is difficult due to complexity of the initial part of HPLC chromatogram in polyethylene samples. That problem is not observed in the GC method. Detection limits in both methods for all analytes are lower than 0.003% which are much lower than the amount of lubricants in commercial polymers (0.05–0.2%).

Detection of a single nucleotide polymorphism in the human α-lactalbumin gene: implications for human milk proteins

Variability in the protein composition of breast milk has been observed in many women and is believed to be due to natural variation of the human population. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are present throughout the entire human genome, but the impact of this variation on human milk composition and biological activity and infant nutrition and health is unclear. The goals of this study were to characterize a variant of human α-lactalbumin observed in milk from a Filipino population by determining the location of the polymorphism in the amino acid and genomic sequences of α-lactalbumin. Milk and blood samples were collected from 20 Filipino women, and milk samples were collected from an additional 450 women from nine different countries. α-Lactalbumin concentration was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and milk samples containing the variant form of the protein were identified with both HPLC and mass spectrometry (MS). The molecular weight of the variant form was measured by MS, and the location of the polymorphism was narrowed down by protein reduction, alkylation and trypsin digestion. Genomic DNA was isolated from whole blood, and the polymorphism location and subject genotype were determined by amplifying the entire coding sequence of human α-lactalbumin by PCR, followed by DNA sequencing. A variant form of α-lactalbumin was observed in HPLC chromatograms, and the difference in molecular weight was determined by MS (wild type=14,070 Da, variant=14,056 Da). Protein reduction and digestion narrowed the polymorphism between the 33rd and 77th amino acid of the protein. The genetic polymorphism was identified as adenine to guanine, which translates to a substitution from isoleucine to valine at amino acid 46. The frequency of variation was higher in milk from China, Japan and Philippines, which suggests that this polymorphism is most prevalent in Asia. There are SNPs in the genome for human milk proteins and their implications for protein bioactivity and infant nutrition need to be considered.

Photodegradation of pesticides and application of bioanalytical methods for their detection

Abstract Photodegradation of coumaphos and azinphos-methyl in the air, in oxygen, and in nitrogen atmosphere (quartz reactor equipped with six 18-W lamps with the maximum emission intensity at 310 nm) was studied. The fastest reaction occurred with coumaphos in nitrogen atmosphere (complete decomposition in 10 min), where the formation of a new compound was also detected by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). In the case of azinphos-methyl, no additional signals in HPLC chromatogram were observed. The rearrangement mechanism, involving a triplet-state activation complex and the formation of an acetylcholinesterase (AChE)-inhibiting oxo analog of coumaphos was verified and confirmed by laser flash photolysis. The suitability of bioanalytical flow-injection analysis (FIA) systems, based on AChE inhibition and spectrophotometric or thermal lens spectrometric detection for rapid and sensitive screening in food quality control was demonstrated. Owing to the high sensitivity of thermal lens spectrometry (TLS), several steps in sample preparation can be avoided (preconcentration, purification, isolation) and incubation times reduced. High sample throughputs (10 h-1) are, however, also achievable for medium toxic oxo organophosphorus (OP) pesticides using spectrophotometric detection providing limits of detection (LODs) at the level of 10 ppb malaoxon equivalents, which is still about 50 times below maximal residue levels. Testing of the method for practical application on a set of 60 samples gave no false negative results and a level of 1.7 % false positives.

Investigation of mercury metallothionein complexes in tissues of rat after oral intake of HgCl2

Mercury, a highly toxic metal found widely throughout the environment, is a potent inducer of metallothionein (MT) expression. The role of MTs in the detoxification of mercury after its oral intake in mammals is studied. After feeding rats with mercuric chloride by gastric gavage, the distribution of heavy metals in rat tissues was investigated by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Extensive accumulation of mercury, copper and zinc in kidney and liver is observed. A homemade preparative size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) column (30 cm × 1.9 cm) packed with Sephadex G-75 (40–120 µm particle size) gel (Pharmacia) was used for the purification of MT fractions in rat tissues. Preliminary results from SEC indicate that the mercury-binding MT levels in liver were much lower than in kidney. The MT fractions were collected, desalted, and then separated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with UV–Vis spectrometry, ICP-MS and electrospray ionization MS detection. One major and several minor peaks were observed in the HPLC chromatograms of the MT fraction for the kidney sample. UV absorption spectra indicate that MTs were found to bind with mercury. There were no significant mercury-binding MTs detected in the liver sample using UV detection. ICP-MS detection showed that mercury-binding MTs in kidney contained large amounts of mercury and copper but little zinc. Further characterization with ESI-MS showed that the major peak found in kidney contained Hg6Cu, Hg5Cu2-MT-2c and Hg6-MT-2β, Hg6Cu-MT-1γ, Hg7-MT-2α. However, distinction between copper and zinc could not be made based on current mass spectrometric analysis because of instrumental resolution limitations. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Safety and efficacy evaluation of aqueous citric acid to degrade B-aflatoxins in maize

Chemical inactivation of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and aflatoxin B2 (AFB2) in maize grain by means of 1N aqueous citric acid was confirmed by the AFLATEST™ immunoaffinity column method, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and the Ames test (Salmonella-microsomal screening system). The AFLATEST™ assay showed that aflatoxins in the maize grain with an initial concentration of 29ng/g were completely degraded and 96.7% degradation occurred in maize contaminated with 93ng/g when treated with the aqueous citric acid. Aflatoxin fluorescence strength of acidified samples was much weaker than untreated samples as observed in HPLC chromatograms. On the other hand, the Ames test results indicated that the mutagenic activity of acidified samples was greatly reduced compared with that of untreated samples based on his−→his+ reversions in the Salmonella TA100 strain. Chemical inactivation appears to be a promising method of removing aflatoxin from food commodities.

Quality, Labeling Accuracy, and Cost Comparison of Purified Soy Isoflavonoid Products

To evaluate the labeling accuracy and product uniformity of available soy isoflavone products in the eastern Washington State region for 13 products and to perform a cost comparison based on the isoflavone content in milligrams for 11 products. Thirteen (13) isoflavone products (7 tablet and 6 capsule formulations) were randomly obtained from health food, grocery, and pharmacy outlets in eastern Washington State. Four different samples of the same product were extracted using 75% ethanol. Each sample was analyzed for isoflavone content using a gradient high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. Pure isoflavonoid standards were used to quantify the content of genistein, daidzein, and glycitein and their respective glycosides. The amount of total isoflavonoids per purchased product was then divided into its purchase price in order to make cost comparisons between the products based on a 50 mg/d dose. The weight variation within each product was generally small (<4%). However, there was significant variability in the composition of the products. Only 4 of the 13 products contained at least 90% of the isoflavone content claimed on the label and 2 of products contained impurities in the HPLC chromatogram that exceeded 40%. There was no difference in the total isoflavonoid contents of the 2 identical products made by the same manufacturer, but the percentages of the main components had changed significantly over time. Based on a 50-mg isoflavone per day dose, the cost of a 30-day supply ranged from $3.20 to $65.88. There is a lack of uniformity among the products tested and the majority (67%) of the products contained less than 90% of labeled amounts. There is significant variability in the compositions between the products and in the composition of the same product over time. Consumers cannot trust isoflavonoid product labels to represent the product's content accurately or that product pricing is a reflection of isoflavone content.

Use of an electronic tongue and HPLC with electrochemical detection to differentiate molds in culture media

A study was conducted to further evaluate an electronic tongue, using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with electrochemical (EC) and UV detection as a reference method. The electronic tongue consisted of four working electrodes made of different metals and arranged in a standard three-electrode configuration. Pulses of voltage were applied to the metals, and the current responses were sampled and collected in a data matrix. The objectives of the present investigation were to examine the ability of the electronic tongue to distinguish between two mold species growing in three different media, and to obtain support for the hypothesis that the device actually discriminates between different redox-active metabolites produced by the molds. Peak areas in EC and UV HPLC chromatograms were collected in a data matrix. The electronic tongue data and the EC and UV data were then subjected to principal component analysis (PCA). A number of peaks in the HPLC–EC chromatograms indicated that the growth media contained redox-active metabolites. Moreover, PCA of peak areas in EC chromatograms revealed differences between the distribution of redox-active metabolites produced by the two species and between the three culture media. The same pattern was apparent in a PCA score plot of electronic tongue data. The peaks in the UV and EC chromatograms differed, and these were also shown by the PCA score plots.

Stability and enhancement of berry juice color.

Attractive color is one of the main sensory characteristics of fruit and berry products. Unfortunately, the color of red juices is unstable and easily susceptible to degradation, leading to a dull and weak juice color. This study was designed to investigate the color stability and copigmentation of four different berry juices enhanced by phenolic acids and commercial color enhancers. Phenolic acid enrichment improved and stabilized the color of the berry juices during storage. The commercial color enhancers immediately produced an intensive color to the juices, which, however, was not very stable. The color enhancement was intensive in strawberry and raspberry juices and effective in lingonberry and cranberry juices. Sinapic acid induced the strongest color in strawberry juice. Ferulic and sinapic acids improved raspberry juice color equally. Rosmarinic acid enhanced the color of lingonberry and cranberry juices the most. The addition of the simple cinnamic acids produced novel peaks to the end of the high-performance liquid chromatography chromatogram, indicating a formation of new compounds. It can be assumed that sinapic and ferulic acids formed new intramolecular copigmentation compounds with berry anthocyanins whereas rosmarinic acid stabilized anthocyanins intermolecularly.