Development and validation of a specific and sensitive liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method for determination of tetrodotoxin in human urine and its pharmacokinetic study

Tetrodotoxin (TTX) exhibits the therapeutic potential in blocking pain and in low doses can safely relieve severe pain. The urinary excretion profiles of TTX in humans have not been reported due to the extremely low lethal dose. In this study, a rapid and specific method based on protein precipitation coupled to liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry was developed to determine the level of TTX in human urine samples. 11-Deoxytetrodotoxin was used as an internal standard (IS). Multiple reaction monitoring mode was used for quantification using target fragment ions m/z 320.0 → 162.1 for TTX and m/z 304.0 → 176.0 for 11-deoxyTTX. The separation of analytes was achieved on a hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography column (250 × 4.6 mm, 5.0 μm). The mobile phase consisted of 5 mM ammonium formate in water (pH = 4.50) and 5 mM ammonium formate in acetonitrile (pH = 4.50). The flow rate was set at 0.80 mL/min in a gradient condition. Calibration plots were linear throughout the range 0.986–98.6 ng/mL of TTX in human urine. The intra-assay accuracies and precisions were within the acceptable range. The method was successfully applied to a urinary excretion study after intravenous administration of TTX to healthy volunteers. The developed method will be helpful for future pharmacological studies of TTX.     

The automatic determination of fluoride in sea water and other natural waters

A Technicon AutoAnalyzer has been used for the determination of 0–1.5 μg fluoride/ml in sea water and other natural waters. Photometric measurement is made on the blue complex formed by reaction with the chelate formed between lanthanum and alizarin fluorine blue, The method has a coefficient of variation of ca. 0.9% at a fluoride level of 1.5 μm/ml.     

Determination of Cu, Zn and Cd in water by FAAS after preconcentration by baker’s yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) immobilized on sepiolite

By using the adsorbent Saccharomyces cerevisiae immobilized on sepiolite an adsorption-elution method was developed for the preconcentration of Cu, Zn, and Cd followed by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). Recoveries were 98.3 ± 0.4% for Cu, 94.2 ± 0.3% for Zn, and 99.04 ± 0.04% for Cd at 95% confidence level obtained by the column method. The influence of sea water matrix elements on the separation of the trace elements was also assessed by using the column procedure. The breakthrough capacities were found to be 74 μmol/g for copper, 128 μmol/g for zinc and 97 μmol/g for cadmium. After optimization the proposed method was applied to the trace metal determination in sea and river water.     

Direct determination of bismuth and antimony in sea water by anodic stripping voltammetry

A method based on anodic stripping voltammetry at the mercury-coated graphite electrode has been developed for the direct determination of bismuth and antimony at their natural levels in sea water. Bismuth plated at -0.4 V from sea water made 1 M in hydrochloric acid gives a stripping peak proportional to concentration at -0.2 V without interference from antimony or other metals normally present. Antimony may be plated from sea water made 4 M in hydrochloric acid and gives a stripping peak at -0.2 V proportional to the sum of bismuth and antimony. By use of the standard addition technique, satisfactory results were obtained for sea water samples with concentration ranges of 0.02–0.09 μg kg^?1 for bismuth and 0.2–0.5 μg kg^?1 for antimony.     

Determination of tungsten in silicates and natural waters

Coprecipitation with hydrous manganese dioxide is used for the concentration of tungsten from natural waters (including sea water) and from solutions prepared from silicate rocks and sediments by hydrofluoric acid attack. After dissolution of the hydrous manganese dioxide precipitate in acidified sulphur dioxide solution, cation excliange is used to separate tungsten and molybdenum from other coprecipitated elements, hydrogen peroxide being used as eluant. Molybdenum is separated from tungsten by extraction of its dithiol complex from 24 N hydrochloric acid medium containing citric acid and can be determined photometrically. After destruction of citric acid, tungsten is determined photometrically with dithiol. The overall cliemical yield of th analytical process is 94±1%. The standard deviation of the method is ±0.010 μg for sea water (0.116 μg W/l) and ca 0.05 μg/g for siliceous sediments containing 0.5–1.0 μg W/g.     

The determination of selenium in sea water,silicates and marine organisms

Spectrophotometric procedures are described for the determination of selenium in sea water, silicates (especially marine sediments) and marine organisms. Coprecipitation with iron(III) hydroxide at pH 4–6 is used to concentrate selenium and to separate it from many of the commoner elements. Separation from iron and other cations is achieved by ion exchange. Selenium is determined photometrically with diaminobenzidine. Isotope dilution with selenium-75 is used to correct results for the small losses occurring during the analysis. Silicates can be decomposed without loss of selenium by means of a mixture of hydrofluoric and nitric acids. The method of Cummins et al., with sulphuric and perchloric acids in presence of molybdate ion, is highly satisfactory for the decomposition of bio-materials. For sea water, which contains ca. 0.4–0.5 <mg Se/l, a standard deviation of 0.03 μg/l was obtained. A silicate sediment and a sea weed containing ca. 1.5 μg Se/g and 0.8 μg Se/g respectively gave coefficients of variation of 8.0% and 4.7%. The U.S. Geological Survey standard granite G1 was found to contain 2.5 ± 0.1 μg Se/g.     

Determination of chromium by atomic absorption spectrophotometry of chromium acetylacetonate : Determination of chromium in sea water

A sensitive atomic absorption method is described for the determination of chromium at sub-microgram levels. Chromium(III) is converted to its acetylacetone complex and extracted into MIBK. The atomic absorption sensitivity is thus en hanced two-fold compared to chromium (III) in aqueous medium. The detection limit of chromium is 0.015 p.p.m. with an acetylene-air flame; the sensitivity obtained with other chromium, methods under the same instrumental conditions is compared. The method can be applied to the determination of chromium in sea water; at a level of ca. 1.6 μg Cr/1, the precision is ±0.06 μg/1.     

Determination of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbons in water samples by static headspace gas chromatography with electron capture detection

A simple, efficient, solvent‐free, and commercial readily available approach for determination of five volatile chlorinated hydrocarbons in water samples using the static headspace sampling and gas chromatography with electron capture detection has been described. The proposed static headspace sampling method was initially optimized and the optimum experimental conditions found were 10 mL water sample containing 20% w/v sodium chloride placed in a 20 mL vial and stirred at 50ºC for 20 min. The linearity of the method was in the range of 1.2–240 μg/L for dichloromethane, 0.2–40 μg/L for trichloromethane, 0.005–1 μg/L for perchloromethane, 0.025–5 μg/L for trichloroethylene, and 0.01–2 μg/L for perchloroethylene, with coefficients of determination ranging between 0.9979 and 0.9990. The limits of detection were in the low μg/L level, ranging between 0.001 and 0.3 μg/L. The relative recoveries of spiked five volatile chlorinated hydrocarbons with external calibration method at different concentration levels in pure, tap, sea water of Jiaojiang Estuary, and sea water of waters of Xiaomendao were in the range of 91–116, 96–105, 86–112, and 80–111%, respectively, and with relative standard deviations of 1.9–3.6, 2.3–3.5, 1.5–2.7, and 2.3–3.7% (n = 5), respectively. The performance of the proposed method was compared with traditional liquid–liquid extraction on the real water samples (i.e., pure, tap, and sea water, etc.) and comparable efficiencies were obtained. It is concluded that this method can be successfully applied for the determination of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbons in different water samples.     

Simultaneous determination of nine anticoagulant rodenticides in soil and water by LC–ESI‐MS

A new and sensitive analytical method is presented to determine nine anticoagulant rodenticide (chlorophacinone, bromadiolone, pindone, diphacinone, warfarin, coumatetralyl, brodifacoum, floucomafen, and difenacoum) residues in water and soil samples by LC–ESI‐MS. Rodenticides were extracted from soil using a methanol and ammonium formate 30 mM mixture, while ethyl acetate was employed in the water samples. A Gemini 5 μm C₁₈ column was employed, and a mobile phase comprising a mixture of ammonium formate 30 mM and di‐n‐butylamine 30 mM in water (pH 3.5), ammonium formate 30 mM and di‐n‐butylamine 20 mM in water (pH 4.4), ammonium formate 30 mM in water (pH 6.5), and methanol in a gradient elution mode was selected. The method was fully validated and it was found to be selective and precise in terms of linearity and accuracy. Extraction recoveries ranged from 90 to 104% for the compounds studied, while the detection and quantification limits were between 0.09 and 2.2 μg/kg in soil or 0.08 and 1.7 μg/L in water. The method was applied to simultaneously measure these compounds in water and soil samples.     

Determination of uranium is sea water and biological materials by neutron activation after selective preconcentration with 1-(2-pyridylazo)-2-naphthol

Uranium is preconcentrated from sea water, tap water, and solutions obtained by digestion of biological samples, by coprecipitation with 1-(2-pyridylazo)-2-naphthol (PAN). Coprecipitation is most effective at pH 4.5–6.5 with a recovery of 85–94%. In the presence of 0.1 M 1,2-cyclohexylenedinitrilotetraacetic acid (CyDTA) as a masking agent, the method is highly selective for uranium. After neutron activation of the precipitate, uranium can be quantified via the ²³⁹U nuclide with a relatively low background in the region of interest (74 keV). Detection limits are 3–4 ng kg^?1 for 500-ml water samples and 5 μg kg^?1 for 0.5-g biological samples (after digestion). The method can be applied to most environmental samples, as shown by the results for sea water and three standard reference materials.     

Spectrophotometric determination of thiocyanate ions in stratal waters

The formation of [FeSCN]²⁺ complex in hydrochloric and sulfuric acid medium was studied by spectrophotometry using iron(III) sulfate and ammonium iron(III) sulfate solutions as reactants. A method for the determination of 10–200 μg SCN^? in 25 mL water solutions containing ammonium iron(III) sulfate in sulfuric acid medium was developed; its determination limit is 2.6 μg (P = 0.99, n = 9). The method was applied for the analysis of model water samples with macro- and micro-component compositions similar to that of water from the Arigol licensed area. Operational control of the accuracy rate was performed by the standard addition method. The developed method can be applied to analyze water samples containing 1–90 mg/L thiocyanate ions.     

Determination of arsenic in sea water,marine plants and silicate and carbonate sediments

Cocrystallization with thionalide in a 0.05 N sulphuric acid medium is proposed for the recovery of microgram amounts of arsenic from sea water and from solutions prepared by the decomposition of silicates and marino plants. After destruction of the organic precipitant, arsenic is determined photomotrically by means of a single-solution molybdenum blue method. The overall recovery for the whole process is 97-98%. Arsenic was determined in sea water with a coefficient of variation of 1.3% at a level of 2 μg As/l. Coefficients of variation of 2.6% and 1.7% were found, for the determination of the element in marine sediments and plants at levels of 6.6 μg/g and 1.7 μg/g respectively. The U. S. Geological survey standard granite G 1 was found to contain 1.2 μg As/g     

Determination of chlorobenzenes in pure,tap, and sea water by static headspace gas chromatography‐electron capture detection

A simple, efficient, solvent‐free, and commercial readily available approach for determination of 11 chlorobenzenes (CBs) in water samples using the static headspace (HS) sampling and gas chromatography‐electron capture detector has been described. The proposed static HS sampling method was initially optimized and the optimum experimental conditions found were 10 mL water sample containing 20% (w/v) sodium chloride placed in a 20 mL vial and stirred at 70°C for 30 min. The linearity of the method ranged from 0.16 to 8.0 μg/L for dichlorobenzene isomers, 0.0176～0.88 μg/L for trichlorobenzene isomers, 0.004～0.2 μg/L for tetrachlorobenzene isomers, and from 0.001 to 0.05 μg/L for pentachlorobenzene and hexachlorobenzene, with correlation coefficients ranging between 0.9992 and 0.9999. The limits of detection were in the low μg/L level, ranging between 0.0002 and 0.04 μg/L. The relative recoveries of spiked CBs with external calibration or standard addition method at different concentration levels in pure, tap, and sea water samples were 83～116%, 89～108%, and 93～112%, respectively, and with relative standard deviations of 1.9～6.3%, 1.6～5.4%, and 2.5～5.7% (n = 5), respectively. It is concluded that this method can be successfully applied for the determination of CBs in pure, tap, and sea water samples.     

Determination of aluminium in blood plasma or serum by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

A carbon-furnace atomic absorption method is used to determine aluminium in blood serum or plasma, diluted (1 + 2) with purified water prior to injection (20 μl) into the furnace. Procedures are described to reduce contamination during sample collection, storage and preparation of samples. A study of the interferences of inorganic ions shows that the temperature programme developed minimises these, allowing the use of aqueous standards for calibration. Ashing at 1400°C, prior to atomisation, also removes non-specific background effects, and optical correction is not required. A sample throughput of 50 duplicate analyses per day is possible and the precision (between batch) at 24 μg Al l^-1 was 11.2% (n = 10) and at 340 μg Al l^-1 was 6.3% (n = 18). Down to 4 μg Al l^-1 can be determined. Reference values for a healthy population were 4.1–20 μg Al l^-1 (mean 10.2).     

Determination of benzene series compounds and chlorobenzenes in water sample by static headspace gas chromatography with flame ionization detection

A simple, efficient, solvent‐free, and readily commercially available approach for the determination of eight benzene series compounds and 12 chlorobenzenes in water samples using the static headspace sampling and gas chromatography with flame ionization detection has been described in this paper. The proposed static headspace sampling method was initially optimized, and the optimum experimental conditions explored were 10 mL water sample containing 20% w/v sodium chloride placed in a 20 mL vial and stirred at 70°C for 43 min. The linearity of the method ranged from 1 to 200 μg/L for 20 analytes, with correlation coefficients ranging between 0.9962 and 0.9994. The limits of detection were in the μg/L level, ranging between 0.15 and 0.4 μg/L. The relative recoveries of spiked benzene series and chlorobenzenes with external calibration method at different concentration levels in pure, tap, and sea water samples were 84–113, 78–115 and 85–119%, respectively, with relative standard deviations of 3.8–6.8, 4.1–5.8, and 4.8–5.4% (n = 5), respectively. That this method can be successfully applied to the determination of benzene series compounds and chlorobenzenes in pure, tap, and sea water samples, simultaneously.     

Determination of glyphosate in water samples by multi-pumping flow system coupled to a liquid waveguide capillary cell

A simple screening method was developed for the determination of glyphosate in water samples using a multi-pumping flow system. The proposed method is based on the reaction between glyphosate and p-dimethylaminocinnamaldehyde (p-DAC), in an acid medium where the reaction product can be measured spectrophotometrically at λ(max) = 495 nm. An experimental design methodology was used to optimize the measurement conditions. The proposed method was applied to the determination of glyphosate in water samples in a concentration range from 0.5 to 10 μg mL(-1). The limit of detection and quantification were 0.17 and 0.53 μg mL(-1), respectively. The results obtained (88.5 to 104.5%) in recovery studies for the determination of glyphosate in different water samples indicated good accuracy and no matrix effect for the developed method. Samples were also analyzed by a confirmatory HPLC method, and agreement within the two set of results was found.     

Formic acid as a reagent for alkaline permanganate : Potentiometric determination of formate

Oxidation of formate with permanganate in alkaline solutions yields a mixture of MnO₄^-2 and MnO₂. The reaction occurs slowly without an abrupt change in potential at the end-point. In 0.1N NaOH, at 80° C in the presence ofAg⁺ions or NaCl,the reaction is accelerated and yields MnO₂. The concentrations of formic acid obtained by oxidation with permanganate are comparable with those obtained by neutralization down to 2.295·10^-2N.Reduction of permanganate in the presence of Ba⁺² ions (alkalinity = 0.5 — 1.5N) or in the absence of Ba⁺ ions (alkalinity = 0.5 — 2.5N), gave accurate results for the permanganate concentration comparable with the results of the acid oxalate method.Formic acid is preferred to sodium formate on account of the greater stability of its solutions.     

2,3-Diphenylquinolizinium bromide as a fluorescent derivatization reagent for amines

2,3-Diphenylquinolizinium bromide (2,3-DPQ) is proposed as a fluorogenic reagent for amino compounds. A spectrofluorimetric method based on its use is described which allows the determination of μg ml^?1 to ng ml^?1 levels of primary and secondary amines, including aromatic and cyclic compounds. The precision of the method was 4–8% (relative standard deviation) (n=10). The influence of several external factors on the derivatization reaction was studied using piperidine as a model compound. The analytical reaction can be effected at room temperature, which avoids the degradation of labile sample amines, e.g., catecholamines, and simplifies the experimental procedure. The presence of an excess of a basic catalyst (triethylamine) was critical for the reaction to develop satisfactorily. Fluorescence due to the reaction product was detected 5 min after the start of the analytical reaction.     

Indirect determination of ampicillin sodium with sodium nitrate-ammonium thiocyanate-water system by extraction-flotation of cuprous thiocyanate

A novel method for indirect determination of ampicillin sodium by the extraction-flotation is proposed in this paper. It is indicated that the degradation of ampicillin sodium took place in the presence of 0.30 M sodium hydroxide in boiling water for 20 min. At pH 4.0, in the presence of ammonium thiocyanate, the thiol group of the degradation product of ampicillin sodium could reduce copper(II) to copper(I) due to the formation of the emulsion cuprous thiocyanate precipitation. By determining the residual amount of copper(II) in the solution and calculating the flotation yield of cuprous thiocyanate, the indirect determination of ampicillin sodium can be performed. When the concentration of cooper(II) was 5.0 μg/mL, a good linear relationship was obtained between the flotation yield of cuprous thiocyanate and the amount of ampicillin sodium in the range of 0.40～9.6 μg/mL. The linear equation is E = 4.1469 + 3.7949c with the correlation coefficient r = 0.9992, and the detection limit (3σ/K) of 0.37 μg/mL. Each parameter has been optimized and the reaction mechanism has been studied. The method has been successfully applied to the determination of ampicillin sodium in pharmaceutical, human plasma and urine samples. Analytical results obtained are satisfactory.     

Formation kinetics of the pink azo dye in the determination of nitrite in natural waters

The kinetics of the reaction for the formation of the pink azo dye in the determination of nitrite in both fresh water and sea water was studied at different acidities, temperatures, and concentrations of N-1 naphthylethylenediamine (NED). It was found that the reaction is considerably faster in sea water than in fresh water, and that increase in the acidity slightly increases the molar absorptivity. A concentration of NED (4.29 × 10^?6 M) between the extremes described in the literature and 4.2 × 10^?3 M sulphanilamide are recommended for both manual determination and flow-injection analysis with respect to rapid reaction and a low reagent blank.