Substances In Complex Matrices Research Articles

Screening the capability of vibrational spectroscopic techniques for simultaneous quantification of vitamins B1, B6, and B12 in a powder blend

The rising possibilities of vibrational spectroscopy coupled with multivariate modeling, enables many applications of these well-established analytical techniques, easy-to-use for rapid and non-destructive analysis. Owing to the lack of need for hazardous solvents or reagents in sample preparation, FTIR, NIR and Raman spectroscopy belong to the group of environmentally friendly techniques, known as “green analytical techniques”. Such characteristics re-introduce them into the pharmaceutical industry, especially as part of process-analytical-technology (PAT) tools for both qualitative and quantitative analysis.This research aimed to assess the potential of ATR-FTIR, NIR and Raman as a PAT for the quantification of Vitamins B1 (thiamine), B6 (pyridoxine) and B12 (cyanocobalamin) in a powder blend, using a partial least square (PLS) regression model, as well as to monitor the powder blend homogeneity.Results from each of the vibrational spectroscopy techniques were compared with those obtained by HPLC, which served as the reference analytical technique for quantifying the active substances in complex matrices using multivariate analysis. The developed PLS models were evaluated for their ability to quantify each of the active substances in the powder blend. The ATR-FTIR, NIR and Raman spectrum segments, revealed by the Variable Importance for Projection (VIP) plot for each model, respectively, were linked to the band assignment of each active ingredient.The statistical indicators of the models (interpretation rate (R2X and R2Y), predictive ability (Q2 and RMSEP) and accuracy (RMSEE)) demonstrated their suitability for in-process estimation of vitamin B1, B6 and B12 contents in powder blends. Estimating B12 content proved more challenging, likely due to sampling issues related to its low content in the powder blend. Nevertheless, the observed variability in the models aligns with the variability in results obtained by HPLC, indicating the lack of blend homogeneity. Therefore, the quantification models could be considered for a further upgrade as PAT for monitoring the powder blend homogeneity during the manufacturing of vitamin blends.

Quantitative determination of amphetamine-type stimulants in sewage and urine by hybrid monolithic column solid-phase microextraction coupled with UPLC-QTRAP MS/MS

A needle-solid-phase microextraction (SPME) method based on hybrid monolithic column (HMC) was proposed for simultaneous separation and extraction of seven amphetamine-type stimulants (ATSs) (amphetamine, methamphetamine, cathinone, methcathinone, 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, and 3,4-methylenedioxyethylamphetamine), combining with ultra-performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole/linear ion trap mass spectrometer (UPLC-QTRAP MS/MS). Thiol functionalized HMC (T-HMC) showed high extraction efficiency and excellent elution results towards target analytes, among three kinds of single/bi-functionalized HMCs. Various parameters of SPME operation and analytical performance were investigated systematically. The adsorption mechanism of T-HMC to ATSs was also discussed and explained as a mixed mode of electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. Under the optimum experimental conditions, the proposed T-HMC needle-SPME-UPLC-QTRAP MS/MS method was rapid and convenient with good accuracy, low sample consumption, high sensitivity and strong anti-interference ability. This method was successfully applied to quantitative determination of seven trace ATSs in complex sewage and urine samples. In view of abundant types of HMCs, the needle-SPME based on functional HMC also had the potential to selectively separating and enriching other tract new psychoactive substances in complex matrices, and could provide a reliable tool for drug monitoring, especially in applications for forensic analysis and drug abuse.

Sensitive quantitation of ultra-trace toxic aconitines in complex matrices by perfusion nano-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry combined with gas-liquid microextraction

The accurate analysis of ultra-trace (e.g. <10−4 ng/mL) substances in complex matrices is a burdensome but vital problem in pharmaceutical analysis, with important implications for precise quality control of drugs, discovery of innovative medicines and elucidation of pharmacological mechanisms. Herein, an innovative constant-flow perfusion nano-electrospray ionization (PnESI) technique was developed firstly features significant quantitative advantages in high-sensitivity ambient MS analysis of complex matrix sample. More importantly, double-labeled addition enrichment quantitation strategies of gas-liquid microextraction (GLME) were proposed for the first time, allowing highly selective extraction and enrichment of specific target analytes in a green and ultra-efficient (>1000-fold) manner. Using complex processed Aconitum herbs as example, PnESI-MS directly enabled the qualitative and absolute quantitative analysis of the processed Aconitum extracts and characterized the target toxic diester alkaloids with high sensitivity, high stability, wide linearity range, and strong resistance to matrix interference. Further, GLME device was applied to obtain the highly specific enrichment of the target diester alkaloids more than 1000-fold, and accurate absolute quantitation of trace aconitine, mesaconitine, and hypaconitine in the extracts of Heishunpian, Zhichuanwu and Zhicaowu was accomplished (e.g., 0.098 pg/mL and 0.143 pg/mL), with the quantitation results well below the LODs of aconitines from any analytical instruments available. This study built a systematic strategy for accurate quantitation of ultra-trace substances in complex matrix sample and expected to provide a technological revolution in many fields of pharmaceutical research.

Enhanced Single-Particle Collision Electrochemistry at Polysulfide-Functionalized Microelectrodes for SARS-CoV-2 Detection.

Single-particle collision electrochemistry (SPCE) has shown great promise in biosensing applications due to its high sensitivity, high flux, and fast response. However, a low effective collision frequency and a large number of interfering substances in complex matrices limit its broad application in clinical samples. Herein, a novel and universal SPCE biosensor was proposed to realize sensitive detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) based on the collision and oxidation of single silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) on polysulfide-functionalized gold ultramicroelectrodes (Ps-Au UMEs). Taking advantage of the strong interaction of the Ag-S bond, collision and oxidation of Ag NPs on the Ps-Au UME surface could be greatly promoted to generate enhanced Faraday currents. Compared with bare Au UMEs, the collision frequency of Ps-Au UMEs was increased by 15-fold, which vastly improved the detection sensitivity and practicability of SPCE in biosensing. By combining magnetic separation, liposome encapsulation release, and DNAzyme-assisted signal amplification, the SPCE biosensor provided a dynamic range of 5 orders of magnitude for spike proteins with a detection limit of 6.78 fg/mL and a detection limit of 21 TCID50/mL for SARS-CoV-2. Furthermore, SARS-CoV-2 detection in nasopharyngeal swab samples of infected patients was successfully conducted, indicating the potential of the SPCE biosensor for use in clinically relevant diagnosis.

Recent advances in the development and application of effervescence-assisted microextraction techniques

Effervescence-assisted microextraction (EAM) is a novel sample pretreatment method based on the reaction of CO2 and H+ donors to generate CO2 bubbles and promote rapid dispersion of the extractant. During this process, the unique dispersion method increases the contact area between the target molecule and the extraction solvent, and the adsorption/extraction efficiency of the adsorbent/extractant toward the target molecule is also enhanced. The EAM technique is of particular interest due its convenient application, low running costs, reduced solvent consumption, high extraction efficiency, and environmental friendliness. Benefiting from the rapid development of extractants, the evolution and application of the EAM technology is becoming more tuned and diversified. Indeed, the synthesis of new extractants, such as nanomaterials with multi-pore structures, large specific surface areas, and rich active sites, has attracted extensive attention, as has the development of ionic liquids with strong extraction abilities and high selectivities. As a result, the EAM technology has been widely applied to the pretreatment of target compounds in various samples, such as food, plant, biological, and environmental samples. However, since these samples often contain polysaccharides, peptides, proteins, inorganic salts, and other interfering substrates, it is necessary to remove some of these substances prior to extraction by EAM. This is commonly achieved using methods such as vortexing, centrifugation, and dilution, among others. The treated samples can then be extracted using the EAM method prior to detection using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), and atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) to detect substances such as heavy metal ions, pesticide residues, endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs), and antibiotics. Using effervescence as a novel assisted method for the dispersion of solvents or adsorbents, the concentrations of Pb2+, Cd2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, bisphenol, estrogen, and the pyrethyl pesticides have previously been successfully determined. Moreover, many influencing factors have been evaluated during method development, including the composition of the effervescent tablet, the solution pH, the extraction temperature, the type and mass/volume of extractant, the type of eluent, the eluent concentration, the elution time, and the regeneration performance. Generally, the cumbersome single factor optimization and multi-factor optimization methods are also required to determine the optimal experimental conditions. Following determination of the optimal experimental conditions, the EAM method was validated by a series of experimental parameters including the linear range, the correlation coefficient (R2), the enrichment factor (EF), the limit of detection (LOD), and the limit of quantification (LOQ). In addition, the use of this method has been demonstrated in actual sample testing, and the obtained results have compared with those achieved using similar detection systems and methods to ultimately determine the accuracy, feasibility, and superiority of the developed method. In this paper, the construction of an EAM method based on nanomaterials, ionic liquids, and other emerging extractants is reviewed, wherein the preparation method, application range, and comparison of similar extractants were evaluated for the same extraction system. In addition, the current state-of-the-art in relation to EAM research and application when combined with HPLC, cold flame AAS, and other analytical techniques is summarized in terms of the detection of harmful substances in complex matrices. More specifically, the samples evaluated herein include dairy products, honey, beverages, surface water, vegetables, blood, urine, liver, and complex botanicals. Furthermore, issues related to the application of this technology are analyzed, and its future development trend in the field of microextraction is forecasted. Finally, the application prospects of EAM in the analysis of various pollutants and components are proposed to provide reference for monitoring pollutants in food, environmental, and biological samples.

Analysis of low-abundance molecules in complex matrices by quadrupole-linear ion trap mass spectrometry using a simultaneous fragmentation and accumulation strategy.

Fast and sensitive analysis of low-abundance molecules in complex matrices has always been a challenge in chemical and biological applications. Mass spectrometry (MS) has been widely used in the fields of chemical and biological analysis due to its unparalleled specificity and sensitivity. However, the MS signals consistently deteriorate in the presence of matrices. Demands for more sensitive and efficient methods to analyze those low-abundance molecules in chemical and biological systems are in urgent need. Based on a home-made quadrupole-linear ion trap (Q-LIT) mass spectrometer, a simultaneous fragmentation and accumulation strategy was developed to improve the sensitivity of the analysis for the low-abundance molecules in complex matrices. Ions were filtered by the quadrupole into the LIT. The precursor ions were fragmented and the product ions were isolated and accumulated in the LIT simultaneously. The fragmentation, isolation and accumulation processes were conducted at the same time. The accumulation time could be controlled to accumulate sufficient product ions. With this strategy, the signal intensity of targeted molecules could be increased by 2-8 times and by increasing the accumulation time, this could be further enhanced. Those interferences induced by isomers and matrices can be reduced by using our method. We further applied our method to the quantification and analysis of biological samples. Tryptic digested peptides of myoglobin (Mb) were successfully detected by our method. We have established a new method with great advantages in the detection of molecules in complex matrices. The application of this method promises better results in the bioanalytical area, especially for the analysis of substances in complex matrices in the future.

Enhanced removal of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in complex matrices by polyDADMAC-coated regenerable granular activated carbon

Granular activated carbon (GAC) has been used to remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) from industrial or AFFF-impacted waters, but its effectiveness can be low because adsorption of short-chained PFASs is ineffective and its sites are exhausted rapidly by co-contaminants. To increase adsorption of anionic PFASs on GAC by electrostatic attractions, we modified GAC's surface with the cationic polymer poly diallyldimethylammonium chloride (polyDADMAC) and tested its capacity in complex water matrices containing dissolved salts and humic acid. Amending with concentrations of polyDADMAC as low as 0.00025% enhanced GAC's adsorption capacity for PFASs, even in the presence of competing ions. This suggests that electrostatic interactions with polyDADMAC's quaternary ammonium functional groups helped bind organic and inorganic ions as well as the headgroup of short-chain PFASs, allowing more overall PFAS removal by GAC. Evaluating the effect of polymer dose is important because excessive addition can block pores and reduce overall PFAS removal rather than increase it. To decrease the waste associated with this adsorption strategy by making the adsorbent viable for more than one saturation cycle, a regeneration method is proposed which uses low-power ultrasound to enhance the desorption of PFASs from the polyDADMAC-GAC with minimum disruption to the adsorbent's structure. Re-modification with the polymer after sonication resulted in a negligible decrease in the sorbent's capacity over four saturation rounds. These results support consideration of polyDADMAC-modified GAC as an effective regenerable adsorbent for ex-situ concentration step of both short and long-chain PFASs from real waters with high concentrations of competing ions and low PFAS loads.

Avaliação da validação da metodologia CCD-densitometria aplicada a uma matriz complexa

Considerando a necessidade de um método rápido, barato e poderoso para a rotina de controle de qualidade, a Densitometria / Cromatografia de Camada Delgada foi um método escolhido para atender a essas solicitações. No entanto, essa técnica tem suas limitações quando usada para ensaios de determinação de substâncias em matrizes complexas, como extratos vegetais. Considerando a restrição da técnica cromatográfica durante o desenvolvimento de metodologias analíticas para medicamentos, foi desenvolvido um novo procedimento para superar a dificuldade em obter os parâmetros de validação dentro dos critérios internacionais de aceitação, principalmente os parâmetros de seletividade e repetibilidade. O método desenvolvido foi aplicado na quantificação de ácido betulínico (BA) a partir de extratos de produtos naturais. Todas as separações foram obtidas nas cromatoplacas Si60 F254 com n-hexano: acetato de etila: ácido acético (7: 3: 0,3) a 560 nm, após derivatização com reagente vanilina-sulfúrica. O sistema forneceu pontos compactos para BA (Rf. 0,5) e exibiu linearidade (R2 = 0,999). A metodologia foi comparada com uma metodologia de cromatografia gasosa validada e nenhuma diferença estatística foi observada.

Produção e avaliação de comprimidos contendo elevado teor de extratos secos de Maytenus ilicifolia

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a influência dos excipientes sobre as propriedades de comprimidos contendo altas doses de grânulos do produto seco por aspersão das folhas de Maytenus ilicifolia. Para tanto, excipientes de diferentes categorias foram estudados, entre os quais: materiais de enchimento/aglutinante (celulose microcristalina; celulose microcristalina e α-lactose mono-hidratada co-processadas; α-lactose monohidratada co-processada com polivinilpirrolidona e com polivinilpirrolidona reticulada; ou, fosfato de cálcio); e, superdesintegrantes (glicolato de amido sódio, carboximetilcelulose sódica ou polivinilpirrolidona); e, lubrificantes/deslizantes (dióxido de silício coloidal e estearato de magnésio). A resistência ao esmagamento e os tempos de desintegração dos comprimidos foram avaliados preliminarmente, e os resultados mostraram que a formulação contendo celulose microcristalina e glicolato de celulose sódica produziu comprimidos com resistência ao esmagamento e o tempo de desintegração, adequados. Os comprimidos finais, preparados com excipientes selecionados, apresentaram força de esmagamento de 88,0 ± 5,2 N, ausência de friabilidade ou variação de peso, tempo máximo de desintegração de 13,2 minutos e dissolução total em até 25 minutos. O teor de taninos totais, avaliado pelo ensaio espectrofotométrico, mostrou que os constituintes químicos foram estáveis durante as transformações tecnológicas das soluções extrativas.

Processing Induced Degradation Routes of Prochloraz in Rapeseed Oil.

Analyzing the fate of substances in complex matrices, such as processed food, is a major challenge in modern analytical chemistry. However, current regulatory procedures for pesticides only include high temperature hydrolysis of the active substance in water (OECD 507) to simulate food processing. This study shows that heating radiolabeled [imidazolyl-2-14C]prochloraz in virgin rapeseed oil at temperatures up to 240 °C leads to an extensive degradation of the active substance. In total, 11 degradation products were identified. Several of these products were formed by reactions of the active substance with ingredients from the oil. 2-[(1-H-Imidazole-1-carbonyl)(propyl)amino]ethyl oleate (icpame-oleate), a reaction product of an oleic acid moiety and the prochloraz backbone, was identified for the first time. The quantification of prochloraz, icpame-oleate, imidazole, and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol demonstrated the dependency of the degradation process on temperature, heating duration, and type of oil. The obtained results in this study show the enormous impact of high temperature food processing on the fate of pesticides. The necessity to consider matrix related reactions in pesticide regulation is emphasized, and the suitability of the OECD 507 guideline is questioned. Concerning possible toxicological risks of novel degradation products, future studies will have to assess potential hazards or opportunities of food processing, ultimately yielding in safer food.

THE ROLE OF POLYETHYLENIMINE IN ENHANCING PERFORMANCE OF GLUTAMATE BIOSENSORS

Background: The first biosensor was constructed more than fifty years ago. It was composed of the biorecognition element and transducer. The first-generation enzyme biosensors play important role in monitoring neurotransmitter and determine small quantities of substances in complex matrices of the samples Glutamate is important biochemicals involved in energetic metabolism and neurotransmission. Therefore, biosensors requires the development a new approach exhibiting high sensibility, good reproducibility and longterm stability. The first-generation enzyme biosensors play important role in monitoring neurotransmitter and determine small quantities of substances in complex matrices of the samples. The aims of this work: To find out which concentration of polyethylenimine (PEI) exhibiting the most high sensibility, good reproducibility and long-term stability. Methods: We designed and developed glutamate biosensor using different concentration of PEI ranging from 0% to 5% at Day 1 and Day 8. Results: After Glutamate biosensors in-vitro characterization, several PEI concentrations, ranging from 0.5% to 1% seem to be the best in terms of VMAX, the KM; while PEI content ranging from 0.5% to 1% resulted stable, PEI 1% displayed an excellent stability. Conclusions: In the result, PEI 1% perfomed high sensibility, good stability and blocking interference. Furthermore, we expect to develop and characterize an implantable biosensor capable of detecting glutamate, glucose in vivo. Key words: Glutamate biosensors, PEi (Polyethylenimine) enhances glutamate oxidase, glutamate oxidase biosensors

ZnO‐Porphyrin Composite Nanostructures as Discriminating Adducts for Metallic Ions in Aqueous Matrices

AbstractTetrapyrrolic macrocycles are largely used in the sensing of various analytes both in liquid and in gaseous phase, but the strong electronic delocalization of this class of molecules makes difficult to realize a selective active layer. To overcome this problem, in the present work it is proposed the synthesis of a supramolecular adduct of zinc oxide nanostructure and a free‐base tetra‐ pyridyl substituted porphyrin. The electronic structure of the two organic/inorganic compounds allows to observe a surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of the porphyrin vibrational bands. This phenomenon is quenched by the presence of mercuric and cupric ions according to two different mechanisms monitored and explained by means of time resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. It was demonstrated that other substances in complex matrices, such as the food extracts, do not affect the electronic communication between ZnO and porphyrin preserving the SERS effect and minimizing the effect of interfering compounds.

High-Pressure Photon Ionization Source for TOFMS and Its Application for Online Breath Analysis.

Photon ionization mass spectrometry (PI-MS) is a widely used technique for the online detection of trace substances in complex matrices. In this work, a new high-pressure photon ionization (HPPI) ion source based on a vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) Kr lamp was developed for time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOFMS). The detection sensitivity was improved by elevating the ion source pressure to about 700 Pa. A radio frequency (RF)-only quadrupole was employed as the ion guide system following the HPPI source to achieve high ion transmission efficiency. In-source collision induced dissociation (CID) was conducted for accurate chemical identification by varying the voltage between the ion source and the ion guide. The high humidity of the breath air can promote the detection of some compounds with higher ionization potentials (IPs) that could not be well detected by single photon ionization (SPI) at low pressure. Under 100% relative humidity (37 °C), the limits of detection down to 0.015 ppbv (parts per billion by volume) for aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons were obtained. This HPPI-TOFMS system was preliminarily applied for online investigations of the exhaled breath from both healthy nonsmoker and smoker subjects, demonstrating its analytical capacity for complicated gases analysis. Subsequently, several frequently reported VOCs in the breath of healthy volunteers, i.e., acetone, isoprene, 2-butanone, ethanol, acetic acid, and isopropanol, were successfully identified and quantified.

Simultaneous determination of bromate, chlorite and haloacetic acids by two-dimensional matrix elimination ion chromatography with coupled conventional and capillary columns

A new, highly sensitive and reliable two-dimensional matrix elimination ion chromatography (IC) method was developed for simultaneous detection of bromate, chlorite and five haloacetic acids. This method combined the conventional IC in first dimension with capillary IC in the second dimension coupled with suppressed conductivity detection. The first dimension utilizes a high capacity column to partially resolve matrix from target analytes. By optimizing the cut window, the target analytes were selectively cut and trapped in a trap column through the use of a six-port valve, while the separated matrix were diverted to waste. The trapped target analytes were delivered on to the capillary column for further separation and detection. Temperature programming was used to improve selectivity in second dimension column to obtain complete resolution of the target analytes. Compared to the performance of one-dimensional IC, the two-dimensional approach resulted in a significant increase in sensitivity for all target analytes with limit of detection ranging from 0.30 to 0.64μg/L and provided more reliable analysis due to second column confirmation. Good linearity was obtained for all the target analytes with correlation coefficients >0.998. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of oxyhalides and haloacetic acids in various matrices with recoveries ranging from 90 to 116% and RSD less than 6.1%. The method allows direct injection of samples and the use of columns with different selectivity, thus significantly reduces the level of false positive results. The method is fully automated and simple, making it practical for routine monitoring of water quality. The satisfactory results also demonstrated that the two-dimensional matrix elimination method coupled with capillary IC is a promising approach for detection of trace substances in complex matrices.

The Genotoxicity of Priority Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) Containing Sludge Samples

ABSTRACTIn this research work we developed in vitro tests utilizing mammalian cell cultures, which can rapidly assess effect of exposure of oily sludge-derived chemicals on human and ecological health. Many of these are hazardous to health and environment due to their toxicity and/or accumulation potential in sediments as well as in organisms. Petroleum refinery and petrochemical industry-derived oily sludges contain toxic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), some of which are lipophilic in nature. Risk assessment of environmental samples suffers from inadequate availability of toxicity data, lack of knowledge about behavior of genotoxic substances in complex matrices, paucity of information on synergistic and antagonistic interactions of mixture of components, etc.; the literature describing the behavior of genotoxic substances in complex mixtures is sparse and sometimes contradictory. The present study aims at assessing the genotoxic potential of oily sludges collected from an integrated petroleum refinery and petrochemical industry located in the southwestern part of India and a petrochemical industry located in the western part of India using a battery of genotoxicity assays such as DNA damage/strand break, chromosomal aberration, p53 protein induction, and apoptosis in CHO-K1 cell culture system.Exposure with different dose levels of sludge extracts (25, 50, 100 μL) in CHO-K1 cells could cause statistically significant level of (P < 0.001) DNA damage, chromosomal aberration, p53 protein induction, and apoptosis in comparison to negative control treatment groups, and the genotoxicity was attributed to PAHs present in the sludge as identified by GC-MS. This implies that the sludges are genotoxic in nature in mammalian cells tested, and the exposure to these may pose a potential genotoxic risk to human beings.

How to approach substance identification in qualitative bioanalysis

The ultimate goal in qualitative analysis in the biosciences is to demonstrate with acceptable probability that for an unknown constituent in a sample only one substance comes into consideration and that all other substances can be rejected. In the biosciences, identification of relevant substances in complex matrices through database retrieval is frequently required. Yet, despite its importance, the subject has not received much attention, so that progress has been limited and relevant literature is scarce. As a result, one can conclude from many publications and reports that qualitative analysis in practice is often not being addressed properly. In this paper, some fundamental aspects of qualitative analysis will be discussed and a general approach is provided for the correct identification of organic substances in complex matrices through database retrieval. Special attention is given to the choice of proper analytical techniques and their inter-laboratory standard deviations, as well as to match factors and decision criteria based on applying multiple analytical techniques, also if the latter have different dimensions (e.g. retention data and spectral data). In addition, the requirements for suitable databases are outlined and the need for inter-laboratory cooperation is emphasized.