Quantitative analysis of six pesticides in fruits by capillary electrophoresis-electrospray-mass spectrometry

A method to identify and quantify six pesticide residues - dinoseb, pirimicarb, procymidone, pyrifenox, pyrimethanil, and thiabendazole - in peaches and nectarines using capillary electrophoresis-electrospray ionization-quadrupole ion trap-tandem mass spectrometry (CE-ESI-MS/MS) is described. Separation was carried out using a buffer of 0.3 M ammonium acetate at pH 4 with 10% methanol. Pesticide residues present in peach and nectarine samples were preconcentrated by solid-phase extraction using C(18), eluted with CH(2)Cl(2), concentrated to dryness, and redissolved in buffer to obtain lower detection limits. The recoveries of the analytes ranged from 58 to 99% and the relative standard deviations were 9 to 19%. Under optimized CE-MS/MS conditions the minimum detectable levels for the six pesticides in spiked peach samples were between 0.01 mg/kg for pirimicarb and 0.05 mg/kg for procymidone with pressure injection of 50 mbar for 5 s (5 nL) at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3, which constitutes a severalfold increase in sensitivity compared to CE-MS, using a single quadrupole, and to conventional CE-UV. The potential of the method was demonstrated by analyzing different samples taken from regional agricultural cooperatives. The pesticides most often detected were thiabendazole and procymidone.     

Epoxides,cyclic sulfites,and sulfate from natural pentacyclic triterpenoids: theoretical calculations and chemical transformations

Several triterpenic derivatives, with the A-ring functionalized, were semisynthesized from oleanolic and maslinic acids. The reactivities of sulfites, sulfate, and epoxides in these triterpene compounds were investigated under different reaction conditions. Moreover, contracted A-ring triterpenes (five-membered rings) were obtained, by different treatments of the sulfate 7. From the epoxide 8, deoxygenated and halohydrin derivatives were semisynthesized with several nucleophiles. Ozonolysis and Beckmann reactions were used to yield 4-aza compounds, from five-membered ring olanediene triterpenes. The X-ray structure of sulfate 7 is given and compared with density functional theory geometries. Theoretical (13)C and (1)H chemical shifts (gauge-invariant atomic orbital method at the B3LYP/6-31G*//B3LYP/6-31G* level) and (3)J(H,H) coupling constants were calculated for compounds 5-9 and 34-36, identifying the (R)- or (S)-sulfur and alpha- or beta-epoxide configurations together with 4-aza or 3-aza structures.     

Palladium-catalyzed electrophilic substitution of allyl chlorides and acetates via bis-allylpalladium intermediates

Palladium-catalyzed electrophilic allylic substitution of functionalized allyl chlorides and allyl acetates can be achieved in the presence of hexamethylditin under mild and neutral reaction conditions. This efficient one-pot procedure involves palladium-catalyzed formation of transient allylstannanes followed by generation of a bis-allylpalladium intermediate, which subsequently reacts with electrophiles. Using this catalytic transformation, various aldehydes and imines can be allylated providing highly functionalized homoallyl alcohols and amines. Furthermore, tandem bis-allylation reactions could be performed by employing tosyl isocyanate and benzylidenemalonitrile as substrates. A particularly interesting mechanistic feature of this reaction is that palladium catalyzes up to three different transformations in each catalytic cycle. Various allylic functionalities, including COOEt, CONH(2), COCH(3), CN, Ph, and CH(3), are tolerated in the catalytic reactions due to the application of neutral and mild reaction conditions. The substitution reaction occurs with very high regioselectivity at the branched allylic terminus. Moreover, in several reactions, a high stereoselectivity was observed indicating that this new catalytic process has a high potential for stereoselective synthesis. The regioselectivity of the reaction can be explained on the basis of DFT calculations. These studies indicate that the allylic substituent prefers the gamma-position of the eta(1)-allyl moiety of the reaction intermediate.     

Application of principal component regression to luminescence data for the screening of ciprofloxacin and enrofloxacin in animal tissues

A new screening method for the analysis of enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin in edible animal tissues is described. The method is based on the application of principal component regression to luminescence measurements after reaction of quinolones with terbium(III) in a micellar medium. The method was used, first, to discriminate between quinolone-containing or quinolone-not-containing samples (concentration below the detection limit) and, then, to quantify the sum of both analytes. Standards in a pure-water matrix, using the first three principal components, were used for the determination. RRMSE range from 4 to 10% depending on the analyte. Calibration was successfully applied to the analysis of spiked chicken and trout muscle at concentrations between 10 and 50 micrograms kg-1.     

Posets isomorphic to their extensions

A standard extension for a poset P is a system Q of lower ends (descending subsets) of P containing all principal ideals of P. An isomorphism between P and Q is called recycling if [Y]Q for all YQ. The existence of such an isomorphism has rather restrictive consequences for the system Q in question. For example, if Q contains all lower ends generated by chains then a recycling isomorphism between P and Q forces Q to be precisely the system of all principal ideals. For certain standard extensions Q, it turns out that every isomorphism between P and Q (if there is any) must be recycling. Our results include the well-known fact that a poset cannot be isomorphic to the system of all lower ends, as well as the fact that a poset is isomorphic to the system of all ideals (i.e., directed lower ends) only if every ideal is principal.     

Numerical solution of hydraulic models based on the axially-dispersed plug flow model by Laplace transforms

The problem of solving hydraulic models based on the axially-dispersed plug flow model which are applicable for the mathematical modelling of different flow-through systems both in chemical analysis (e.g., chromatography, flow injection analysis) and chemical industry (e.g., different tubular reactors) is discussed. Methods for numerical inversion of the model solution in the Laplace domain by expanding it into series of orthogonal functions are compared. Best results with respect to precision and consumption of computation time are given by the methods employing Chebyshov polynomials of the first kind and Fourier sine series. These methods were found to be better in these respects than some other frequently used numerical inversion methods.     

Determination of macrolide antibiotics by liquid chromatography

The liquid chromatographic separation of seven macrolides used in food producing animals in the European Union has been studied. Separation was performed by using an end-capped high-purity silica-based C₁₈ column and mobile phases consisting of phosphate buffer (pH 2.5)–acetonitrile mixtures. The effect of pH and acetonitrile percentage on the separation was examined. Two UV-based detection systems, wavelength programming and diode array, were assayed. Detection limits were in the range 6–33 μg l⁻¹ for spiramycin, tilmicosin, tylosin, kitasamicin and josamicin and about 400 μg l⁻¹ for erythromycin and oleandomycin. The suitability of the method for multiresidue determination of the five macrolides is demonstrated by the analysis of spiked samples of chicken muscle.     

A new approach for the sequential injection spectrophotometric determination of the total antioxidant activity

A sequential injection system based on the ABTS (2,2′-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic-acid) methodology was developed. The proposed method, incorporating a mixing chamber in the side port of the selection valve, was evaluated to measure the total antioxidant activity of several beverages and foods.The ABTS⁺ is generated by oxidation of ABTS with potassium persulfate and is reduced in presence of hydrogen-donating antioxidants converting into a colourless product. The applicability of the developed method was tested by measurement of the antioxidant activity of pure compounds as well as by analysing complex food and beverage samples. The antioxidant activity was presented as l(+) ascorbic acid equivalence. The values obtained by this methodology were not significantly different from the results obtained by the original spectrophotometric ABTS assay. For most of the studied antioxidants, antioxidant activity varied with pH and dilution. The proposed SIA system is suitable for screening direct or diluted total antioxidant activity of pure compounds or food samples.     

The speciation of rhodium(III) in hydrochloric acid media by capillary zone electrophoresis

A fast and effective method to study the aquation of rhodium(III) chlorocomplex in hydrochloric solutions using capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) is developed. At least five species, some of which seem to be oligomeric, are formed in solution during the aquation process at pH>1. The fast hydration of RhCl₆³⁻ makes this species impossible to detect. The first species detected in the optimised conditions is RhCl₅(H₂O)²⁻ although RhCl₄(H₂O)₂⁻ is the main species during the first stage of the aquation process. When equilibrium is reached either RhCl₃(H₂O)₃ or a cationic complex, RhCl₂(H₂O)₄⁺, is formed as the main species. Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionisation Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) is used as a novel technique to elucidate the structure of the rhodium aqua/chloro complexes formed in solution. Results obtained by CZE are confirmed by spectrophotometry.