A new fluorescent derivatization reagent and its application to free fatty acid analysis in pomegranate samples using HPLC with fluorescence detection

A new fluorescent labeling reagent has been developed for the determination of fatty acids (FAs) by HPLC with fluorescence detection. The derivatization conditions including the amount of derivatization reagent, temperature, and type of catalyst were investigated, the results indicated that the reaction proceeded within 30 min at 90°C in the presence of K₂CO₃ catalyst. The maximal yield was obtained with a four‐ to fivefold molar reagent excess. The derivatives exhibited strong fluorescence with an excitation maximum at λ_ex = 245 nm and an emission maximum at λ_em = 410 nm. Twenty‐five FA derivatives were well separated by RP‐HPLC on a Hypersil BDS C₈ column in combination with gradient elution. All FAs were found to give excellent linear responses with correlation coefficients >0.9992. The method gave a low LOQ of 0.85–5.5 ng/mL (S/N of 10). The developed method was employed to analyze free FAs (FFAs) composition in pomegranate samples without any purification. FFAs in samples were doubly identified by HPLC retention time and protonated molecular ion corresponding to m/z [M+H]⁺. This newly developed method allows a highly sensitive determination of trace FFAs from pomegranate and other foodstuffs.     

Release of nitric oxide from nitrated fatty acids: Insights from computational chemistry

Nitrated fatty acids (NO₂‐FAs) exhibit a variety of important biological attributes, including a nitric oxide (˙NO) donor and a cell‐signaling molecule. We investigated the mechanisms of fatty‐acid nitration, and the release of ˙NO from NO₂‐FAs. NO₂‐FAs are formed effectively by the addition of ˙NO₂, followed by either hydrogen abstraction or addition of a second NO₂. The latter reaction results in a vicinal nitronitrite ester form of FA, which isomerizes into vicinal nitrohydroxy FA via hydronium ion catalysis. The nitrohydroxy FAs exist in equilibria with NO₂‐FAs. Nitration of conjugated linoleic acid (cLA) was proved to be significantly more efficient than that of LA. In a nonaqueous environment, release of ˙NO from nitrite ester (ONO‐FA) was facilitated by ˙NO₂. Furthermore, the release of ˙NO from NO₂‐cLA is the most favorable in the nitrite ester mechanism. In an aqueous environment, the modified Nef reaction was shown to be feasible. In addition, the release of ˙NO from 10‐ and 12‐NO₂‐LA involves a larger reaction barrier and is more endergonic than those from 9‐ and 13‐NO₂‐LA.     

Efficient and Bio‐inspired Conversion of Cellulose to Formic Acid Catalyzed by Metalloporphyrins in Alkaline Solution

A bio‐inspired approach for efficient conversion of cellulose to formic acid (FA ) was developed in an aqueous alkaline medium. Metalloporphyrins mimicking cytochrome P450 exhibit efficiently and selectively catalytic performance in catalytic conversion of cellulose. High yield of FA about 63.7% was obtained by using sulfonated iron(III ) porphyrin as the catalyst and O₂ as the oxidant. Iron(III )‐peroxo species, TSPPFe^IIIOO ⁻, was involved to cleave the C‐C bonds of gluconic acid to FA in this catalytic system. This approach used relatively high concentration of cellulose and ppm concentration of catalyst. This work may provide a bio‐inspired route to efficient conversion of cellulose to FA .     

Preparation and characterization of cellulose nanocomposite films with two different organo-micas

The mechanical properties, morphologies, and gas barriers of hybrid films of cellulose with two different organoclays are compared. Dodecyltriphenyl-phosphonium-mica (C₁₂PPh-mica) and hexadecyl-mica (C₁₆-mica) were used as reinforcing fillers in the fabrication of the cellulose hybrid films. The cellulose hybrid films were synthesized from N-methyl-morpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) solutions with the two organo-micas, and solvent-cast at room temperature under vacuum, yielding 15–20 μm thick films of cellulose hybrids with various clay contents. We found that the addition of only a small amount of organoclay is sufficient to improve the mechanical properties and gas barriers of the cellulose hybrid films. Even polymers with low organoclay contents (1–7 wt %) were found to exhibit much higher strength and modulus values than pure cellulose. The addition of C₁₂PPh-mica was more effective than that of C₁₆-mica with regards to the initial tensile modulus, whereas the addition of C₁₆-mica was more effective than that of C₁₂PPh-mica with regards to the gas barrier of the cellulose matrix. The intercalations of the polymer chains in the clays were examined with wide-angle X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electron microscopy (SEM and TEM).     

Simple Methodology for the Quantitative Analysis of Fatty Acids in Human Red Blood Cells

In the last years, there has been an increasing interest in evaluating possible relations between fatty acid (FA) patterns and the risk for chronic diseases. Due to the long life span (120 days) of red blood cells (RBCs), their FA profile reflects a longer term dietary intake and was recently suggested to be used as an appropriate biomarker to investigate correlations between FA metabolism and diseases. Therefore, the aim of this work was to develop and validate a simple and fast methodology for the quantification of a broad range of FAs in RBCs using gas chromatography with flame ionization detector, as a more common and affordable equipment suitable for biomedical and nutritional studies including a large number of samples. For this purpose, different sample preparation protocols were tested and compared, including a classic two-step method (Folch method) with modifications and different one-step methods, in which lipid extraction and derivatization were performed simultaneously. For the one-step methods, different methylation periods and the inclusion of a saponification reaction were evaluated. Differences in absolute FA concentrations were observed among the tested methods, in particular for some metabolically relevant FAs such as trans elaidic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid. The one-step method with saponification and 60 min of methylation time was selected since it allowed the identification of a higher number of FAs, and was further submitted to in-house validation. The proposed methodology provides a simple, fast and accurate tool to quantitatively analyse FAs in human RBCs, useful for clinical and nutritional studies.

     

Surface modification of cellulose with plant triglycerides for hydrophobicity

Hydrophobic cotton was achieved by surface modification of the cellulose with triglycerides from several plant oils including soybean, rapeseed, olive and coconut oils. These oils were delivered to the cellulose substrates in homogeneous solutions of ethanol or acetone as well as aqueous emulsions. Surface modification was facilitated by solvent evaporation followed by heating between 110 and 120 °C for 60 min. All oils, except for coconut, produced hydrophobic and less water-absorbing cotton, supporting the desirable role of higher unsaturation in the fatty acids to achieve crosslinked network. The most hydrophobic surfaces were obtained by the reaction with 1% soybean oil in acetone. On both bleached and scoured cotton, a water contact angle of 80° and water absorption value of 0.82 μL/mg were achieved. The acquired hydrophobicity was not only retained after water washing but also improved with subsequent exposures to elevated temperatures. The surface tension of scoured cotton cellulose was lowered from 63.81 mJ/m² to 25.74 mJ/m² when modified by soybean oil delivered in acetone, which is lower than that of poly(ethylene terephthalate). An aqueous emulsion of soybean oil also rendered the scoured cotton hydrophobic, which shows promise for a green chemistry and bio-based approach to achieve water repellency on cellulosic materials.     

Flame-retarded hydrophobic cellulose through impregnation with aqueous solutions and supercritical CO2

We have developed flame-retarded hydrophobic cellulose-based materials by producing in situ water-soluble and insoluble inorganic microparticles on various surfaces of native cellulose (filter paper and pure cotton textile). The nanoparticles were produced by simple impregnation of cellulose with two different aqueous solutions followed by a third impregnation with supercritical CO₂. Finally, the composite cellulose materials were covered by a silicon-based polymer thin film, to turn it into hydrophobic and prevent the water-soluble particles from absorbing humidity. The obtained flame-retardant behaviour is due to a combination of mechanisms. The total treatment of cellulose has an impact on, both its surface morphology and its hydrophilicity. Thus, the hydrophobic nature of the silicon-based polymer film along with the roughness caused by the presence of the inorganic particles and the inherent roughness of native cellulose resulted in superhydrophobic behaviour. The same process-concept was also applied to regenerated (from newspaper) cellulose with ionic liquids. The produced materials were characterised by thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and water contact angle measurements.     

Retention characteristics of aliphatic compounds on cellulose acetates as a stationary phase with an aqueous mobile phase

Summary Cellulose and cellulose mono-, di-, and triacetate were used as stationary phases for liquid chromatography with water as a mobile phase, and the retention behavior of alcohols, ethers, ketones, and chlorides was examined. For cellulose acetate columns, the logarithm of the specific retention volume, (logV _g ^* ), correlated linearly with the logarithm of partition coefficient between 1-octanol and water (log K_o/w), for each homologous group, but all solutes were unretained on cellulose columns. With the exception of chlorides, the intercept values of the log V _g ^* –log K_o/w regression lines increased significantly with increase of acetyl content of cellulose acetates, but the slopes of the regression lines changed little. This suggests that hydrophobic interaction between the acetyl groups of cellulose acetates and the alkyl chains of the solutes is the dominant factor in the retention.The capacity factors for 1-alcohols with cellulos diacetate column indicated a maximum at a column temperature of about 40°C. This unique retention behavior was assumed to be caused by small structural change of the cellulose acetate polymer, because this temperature effect on the retention corresponded with effects observed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC).     

Acceptorless Photocatalytic Dehydrogenation of Furfuryl Alcohol (FOL) to Furfural (FAL) and Furoic Acid (FA) over Ti3C2Tx/CdS under Visible Light

Acceptorless photocatalytic dehydrogenation is not only a promising alternative to photocatalytic water splitting for hydrogen generation but also provides a green and sustainable strategy for the synthesis of value-added organic compounds. In this work, Ti₃C₂T_x/CdS nanocomposites were obtained by self-assembly of hexagonal CdS in the presence of preformed Ti₃C₂T_x nanosheets, which serves as a photocatalyst for acceptorless dehydrogenation of biomass-derived furfuryl alcohol (FOL) to furfural (FAL) and furoic acid (FA) in neutral and alkaline medium respectively, with simultaneous generation of stoichiometric hydrogen under visible light. Ti₃C₂T_x MXene acts as an efficient cocatalyst for the photocatalytic dehydrogenation of FOL over CdS, with an optimum performance achieved over 0.50 wt% Ti₃C₂T_x/CdS nanocomposite. This study provides an economic and sustainable strategy for the simultaneous valorization of biomass-derived FOL to produce FAL and FA as well as the production of clean energy hydrogen under mild condition based on noble metal-free semiconductor-based photocatalysts.     

Simple Methodology for the Quantitative Analysis of Fatty Acids in Human Red Blood Cells

In the last years, there has been an increasing interest in evaluating possible relations between fatty acid (FA) patterns and the risk for chronic diseases. Due to the long life span (120 days) of red blood cells (RBCs), their FA profile reflects a longer term dietary intake and was recently suggested to be used as an appropriate biomarker to investigate correlations between FA metabolism and diseases. Therefore, the aim of this work was to develop and validate a simple and fast methodology for the quantification of a broad range of FAs in RBCs using gas chromatography with flame ionization detector, as a more common and affordable equipment suitable for biomedical and nutritional studies including a large number of samples. For this purpose, different sample preparation protocols were tested and compared, including a classic two-step method (Folch method) with modifications and different one-step methods, in which lipid extraction and derivatization were performed simultaneously. For the one-step methods, different methylation periods and the inclusion of a saponification reaction were evaluated. Differences in absolute FA concentrations were observed among the tested methods, in particular for some metabolically relevant FAs such as trans elaidic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid. The one-step method with saponification and 60 min of methylation time was selected since it allowed the identification of a higher number of FAs, and was further submitted to in-house validation. The proposed methodology provides a simple, fast and accurate tool to quantitatively analyse FAs in human RBCs, useful for clinical and nutritional studies.     

Property Comparison of Cellulose Acetate Prepared Homogenously in Different Ionic Liquids

Cellulose acetates were synthesized homogeneously in four types of ionic liquids without any catalyst using cotton linter as the raw material and acetic anhydride as the esterification agent. FTIR, XRD and DSC were used to characterize the obtained products. It was shown that the homogeneously prepared cellulose acetates became completely amorphous. Degree of substitution of cellulose acetate synthesized in [C₄C₁Im][OAc] was found the highest; whereas T_g of this ester was the lowest. It was also found that the film made of cellulose acetate prepared in [C₄C₁Im][OAc] had lower toughness.     

Beyond a solvent: the roles of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride in the acid-catalysis for cellulose depolymerisation

In this report, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C₄C₁im]Cl) is demonstrated to enhance the kinetics of acid-catalysed hydrolysis of 1,4-β-glucans in binary solvent mixtures. [C₄C₁im]Cl plays other roles in the reaction beyond acting as a solvent for cellulose, as currently accepted. In fact, the presence of the IL increases the Hammett acidity of the catalyst dissolved in the reaction medium. The kinetic data from cellobiose and cellulose hydrolysis directly correlate with the acid strength found for p-toluenesulfonic acid in the different reaction media studied here. The current report identifies neglected, but yet very important phenomena occurring in cellulose depolymerisation.     

Quantification and molecular imaging of fatty acid isomers from complex biological samples by mass spectrometry

Elucidating the isomeric structure of free fatty acids (FAs) in biological samples is essential to comprehend their biological functions in various physiological and pathological processes. Herein, we report a novel approach of using peracetic acid (PAA) induced epoxidation coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) for localization of the C C bond in unsaturated FAs, which enables both quantification and spatial visualization of FA isomers from biological samples. Abundant diagnostic fragment ions indicative of the C C positions were produced upon fragmentation of the FA epoxides derived from either in-solution or on-tissue PAA epoxidation of free FAs. The performance of the proposed approach was evaluated by analysis of FAs in human cell lines as well as mapping the FA isomers from cancer tissue samples with MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS. Merits of the newly developed method include high sensitivity, simplicity, high reaction efficiency, and capability of spatial characterization of FA isomers in tissue samples.

A structural lipidomics approach employs peracetic acid-induced epoxidation coupled with mass spectrometry for pinpointing C C bonds in unsaturated fatty acids, enabling both quantification and imaging of FA isomers from biological samples.     

Selective reactivities and accessibilities of the hydroxyl groups in cotton cellulose based on equilibrium data from a reversible chemical reaction

In order to determine the relative equilibrium constants for reactions of the hydroxyl groups at C₂, C₃, and C₆ of the D-glucopyranosyl units, methyl vinyl sulfone was reacted with cellulose dissolved in benzyltrimethylammonium hydroxide. The reaction was carried to constancy in distribution of substituents between the 2–0– and 6–0–positions. The distributions of substituents in the D-glucopyranosyl units were measured by gas-liquid chromatographic analysis of the products from hydrolysis of the modified cellulose. Relative equilibrium constants were then evaluated, assuming complete accessibility of all three types of hydroxyl groups of the cellulose in solution. For determination of the relative accessibilities of the individual types of hydroxyl groups in heterogeneous reactions of cotton cellulose with methyl vinyl sulfone, the reactions were carried to equilibrium distributions in media of various normalities of sodium hydroxide (i.e., media of various swelling strength). The distributions of substituents in the D-glucopyranosyl units were measured. From these values and the ratio of equilibrium constants, the relative accessibilities of the hydroxyl groups at C₂ versus those at C₆ were calculated. Apparent accessibilities of the hydroxyl groups at C₂ are approximately double those at C₆ when the reaction is carried out in 1N sodium hydroxide and about triple those at C₆ when the reaction is carried out in 0.5N sodium hydroxide.     

Characterizing ion mobility and collision cross section of fatty acids using electrospray ion mobility mass spectrometry

This study investigated the ion mobility (IM) and the collision cross section (CCS) of fatty acids (FAs) using electrospray IM MS. The IM analysis of 18 FA ions showed intriguing differences among the saturated FAs, monounsaturated FAs, multi‐unsaturated FAs, and cis‐isomer/trans‐isomer with respect to the aliphatic tail chains. The length of aliphatic tail chain present in the ion structures had a strong influence on the differentiation of drift, while the number of double bond showed a weaker influence. The tiny drift differences between cis‐isomer and trans‐isomer were also observed. In the CCS measurements, two internal standards were involved in the mobility calibration and accuracy estimation. It insured our empirical CCS values were of high experimental precision (±0.35% or better) and accuracy (±0.25% or better). Moreover, the mass‐to‐charge ratio (m/z) – mobility plots obtained by ion mobility spectrometry with mass spectrometry analysis of FAs – was used to investigate the structural relationship between the molecules. Each series of FAs sharing a similar structure was aligned in the linear plot. Finally, the developed procedure was applied to the determination of FAs in rat adipose tissues, and it allowed the presence of 13 FAs to be confirmed with their exact masses and CCS values. These studies reveal the direct relationship between the behaviors in IM and the molecular structures and thus may provide further validations to the FA identification process. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fast method for monitoring phospholipase A2 activity by liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

A new liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC–ESI-MS) method for the fast determination of phospholipase A₂ (PLA₂) activity has been developed. For the first time, the method allows the parallel detection of glycerophosphatidylcholine (GroPCho) as PLA₂ substrate as well as of its products fatty acid (FA) and lyso-GroPCho. ESI-MS was carried out in negative ion mode, detecting the FA as [M − H]⁻ ions and the lyso-GroPCho and GroPCho as acetate adducts [M + Ac]⁻. Utilizing a fast gradient on a short C₅-modified silica gel column with 3 μm particles, five GroPChos, five FAs and six lyso-GroPChos could be separated according to their chain length in less than 3 min. A very high average chromatographic efficiency of 41,200 theoretical plates (plate height 0.5 μm) was achieved for the separation of the GroPChos. The method was applied for monitoring the release of arachidonic acid (20:4 FA) and 1-stearoyl-lyso-sn-GroPCho (18:0 GroPCho) from unilamellar vesicles of 1-stearoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-GroPCho (18:0/20:4 GroPCho). With a limit of detection of 0.5 pmol (total amount injected on column) for the FAs and lyso-GroPChos and 1.5 pmol for the GroPChos as well as a linear range of 1.5 decades, the method has proven to be suitable for the monitoring of different secretory PLA₂ (sPLA₂) conversions. Furthermore, it was applied to screen a small library of PLA₂ inhibitors for their activity towards sPLA₂ type V and snake venom of Bothrops moojeni. In both cases, active samples could be directly identified. With its short analysis time, its high chromatographic efficiency and the parallel detection of substrate and all products, the developed LC–ESI-MS method is well suited for the analysis of PLA₂ activity.     

Co-solubilization of the Hydrophobic Drugs Carbamazepine and Nifedipine in Aqueous Nonionic Surfactant Media

Co-solubilization of the hydrophobic drugs Carbamezipine (CBZ) and Nifedipine (NFD) by micellar solutions at 25 °C, using two series of polyoxyethylene based nonionic surfactants, was measured and compared. The first series is composed of surfactants with a 12 carbon (C₁₂) hydrophobic chain while the second series had 16 carbon (C₁₆) hydrophobic chains. Experimental results were obtained for solubilization and co-solubilization of CBZ and NFD within the micelles at saturation and quantification was done in terms of the molar solubilization ratio and the micelle–water partition coefficient employing spectrophotometric and tensiometric techniques. The extent of micellar solubilization of CBZ is much greater than NFD. The C₁₂ series of surfactants exhibit higher solubilization capacities for CBZ than the C₁₆ series while the reverse is the case for NFD. Co-solubilization results showed competitive solubilization of the drugs. A synergistic effect on the solubilization of NFD was observed in the presence of CBZ in Brij30 and Brij56 surfactant systems while, in the remaining surfactants, the solubility of NFD was slightly reduced. Since the surfactants used in the present study are either nontoxic or have minimal toxicity, it is expected that they can be employed as drug delivery vehicles for co-administration of the two drugs in vivo. Both from industrial and research points of view, this paper reports a comprehensive study for co-solubilization of differently structured drugs in micellar media.     

Interaction of Humic Substances with Organic Pollutants and its Influence on the Concentration of these Pollutants from Water

Abstract

The influence of fulvic acids (FAs) and humic acids (HAs) of different origin on liquid-liquid and solid-phase extraction of hydrophobic organic compounds (HOCs) with broadly varying values of octanol-water partition coefficients K_ow has been investigated. It is shown that the solubilization by dissolved FAs and HAs can lead to a significant decrease in recovery of some HOCs even from very dilute (10–20 mg/l) aqueous solutions of these acids. The results of these investigations and an analysis of the relevant literature data, demonstrate that the extent of solubilization of HOCs by humic substances is determined not only by K_ow, but also by the specific structure of the HOCs. The hypothesis of the formation of intramolecular micelles (IMMs) by unaggregated FAs and HAs, and the partition of HOCs between water and the IMMs is put forward to explain the solubilization of HOCs.     

Determination of enantiomeric purity of S‐amlodipine by chiral LC with emphasis on reversal of enantiomer elution order

An LC method was developed and prevalidated for the enantiomeric purity determination of S‐amlodipine in polar organic solvent chromatography using a chlorine‐containing cellulose‐based chiral stationary phase (CSP). The concentration of formic acid (FA) (0.01–0.2%) in the mobile phase containing acetonitrile as the main solvent was found to influence the elution order of amlodipine enantiomers as well as the enantioresolution. A reversal of the enantiomer elution order of amlodipine was only observed with chiral stationary phases with both electron‐withdrawing (chloro) and electron‐donating groups (methyl) on the phenyl moieties of the chiral selector, namely cellulose tris(3‐chloro‐4‐methylphenylcarbamate) and cellulose tris(4‐chloro‐3‐methylphenylcarbamate). The highest enantioresolution (R_s: 4.1) value was obtained at the lowest FA concentration (0.01%) using cellulose tris(4‐chloro‐3‐methylphenylcarbamate) as the chiral selector and the enantiomeric impurity, R‐amlodipine, eluted first under these conditions. Therefore, the mobile phase selected for the prevalidation of the method consisted of ACN/0.1% DEA/0.01% FA and the temperature was set at 25°C. The method was prevalidated by means of the strategy based on the total measurement error and the accuracy profile. The method was found to be selective and the limit of quantification was found to be about 0.05% for R‐amlodipine, while the limit of detection was close to 0.02%.     

Determination of neonicotinoid insecticides in environmental samples by micellar electrokinetic chromatography using solid‐phase treatments

A sensitive and reliable method based on MEKC has been developed and validated for trace determination of neonicotinoid insecticides (thiamethoxam, acetamiprid, and imidacloprid) and the metabolite 6‐chloronicotinic acid in water and soil matrices. Optimum separation of the neonicotinoid insecticides was obtained on a 58 cm long capillary (75 μm id) using as the running electrolyte 40 mM SDS, 5 mM borate (pH 10.4), and 5% (v/v) methanol at a temperature of 25°C, a voltage of 25 kV and with hydrodynamic injection (10 s). The analysis time was less than 7 min. Prior to MEKC determination, the samples were purified and enriched by carrying out extraction‐preconcentration steps. For aqueous samples, off‐line SPE with a sorptive material such as Strata‐X (polymeric hydrophobic sorbent) and octadecylsilane (C₁₈) was carried out to clean up and preconcentrate the insecticides. However, for soil samples, matrix solid‐phase dispersion (MSPD) was applied with C₁₈ used as the dispersant. Good linearity, accuracy, and precision were obtained and the detection limits were in the range between 0.01 and 0.07 μg mL^?1 for river water and 0.17 and 0.37 μg g^?1 for soil samples. Recovery levels reached greater than 92% for all of the assayed neonicotinoids in river water samples with Strata‐X. In soil matrices, the best recoveries (63–99%) were obtained with MSPD.