Analysis and fate of the hindered amine light stabilizer Tinuvin 622 in polyester powder coatings using high performance liquid chromatography / time of flight mass spectrometry

Hindered amine light stabilizers are used to protect polymers from heat- and light-induced degradation. In this study the oligomeric stabilizer Tinuvin 622 was analysed in-depth employing high performance liquid chromatography/time of flight mass spectrometry (HPLC/TOF-MS) to differentiate products of different manufacturers in respect of their terminating groups and oligomer length. Additionally, the behaviour of the stabilizer in uncured and cured polyester powder coatings was investigated regarding its interaction with the other coating components and chemical changes during the crosslinking process. The extraction efficiency was determined as a function of oligomer length and coating colour.     

Mass spectrometry imaging of latent fingerprints using titanium oxide development powder as an existing matrix

Recent research has focused on increasing the evidentiary value of latent fingerprints through chemical analysis. Although researchers have optimized the use of organic and metal matrices for matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization‐mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI‐MSI) of latent fingerprints, the use of development powders as matrices has not been fully investigated. Carbon forensic powder (CFP), a common nonporous development technique, was shown to be an efficient one‐step matrix; however, a high‐resolution mass spectrometer was required in the low mass range due to carbon clusters. Titanium oxide (TiO₂) is another commonly used development powder, especially for dark nonporous surfaces. Here, forensic TiO₂ powder is utilized as a single‐step development and matrix technique for chemical imaging of latent fingerprints without the requirement of a high‐resolution mass spectrometer. All studied compounds were successfully detected when TiO₂ was used as the matrix in positive mode, although, generally, the overall ion signals were lower than the previously studied CFP. TiO₂ provided quality mass spectrometry (MS) images of endogenous and exogenous latent fingerprint compounds. The subsequent addition of traditional matrices on top of the TiO₂ powder was ineffective for universal detection of latent fingerprint compounds. Forensic TiO₂ development powder works as an efficient single‐step development and matrix technique for MALDI‐MSI analysis of latent fingerprints in positive mode and does not require a high‐resolution mass spectrometer for analysis.     

An Uzawa-type algorithm for the coupled Stokes equations

An Uzawa-type algorithm is designed for the coupled Stokes equations discretized by the mixed finite element method. The velocity solved by the presented algorithm is weakly divergence-free, which is different from the one solved by the common Uzawa method. Besides, an optimal relaxation parameter of the presented algorithm is provided.     

Simultaneous determination of novel β-lactamase inhibitor WCK 4234 and Meropenem in dog plasma by LC–MS/MS and its application to preclinical pharmacokinetic study

A precise and accurate liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometric (LC–MS/MS) bioanalytical method has been developed and validated for the simultaneous quantification of WCK 4234 and meropenem (MEM) in dog plasma. Protein precipitation using acetonitrile was employed as a sample preparation approach. Cefepime was used as an internal standard. The developed method was selective, sensitive (limit of quantification, 0.075 μg/ml for both drugs), accurate (recovery > 90%), precise (CV < 10%) and linear (r² ≥ 0.99, concentration range 0.075–120 μg/ml for both analytes). The developed method was successfully applied for the determination of both drugs in plasma to assess the pharmacokinetics in beagle dogs. WCK 4234 + MEM in a 1:1 ratio at 15 + 15 and 30 + 30 mg/kg doses were administered by the intravenous route. The mean plasma concentration and area under the concentration–time curve of WCK 4234 ranged from 38.3 to 77.4 μg/ml and from 47.8 to 77.1 μg h/ml, respectively, and the values for MEM ranged from 52.2 to 115.3 μg/ml and 70.5 to 133.6 μg h/ml respectively. The elimination half-life of WCK 4234 and MEM was around 0.8 h.     

Research Progress and Application of Ion Funnel Technique

Ion funnel is a new-style ion guider which can reduce spatial divergence and energy dispersity of the transmission ions by using radio frequency (RF) electric field to confine the ions radially and the direct current (DC) axial electric field to move the ions toward the exit, and thus it can greatly increase the ion transmission efficiency and improve the sensitivity of the mass spectrometry. Since ion funnel was invented in 1997, it has attracted a close attention of mass spectrometry scientists all over the world. Ion funnel has been used in various kinds of mass spectrometry, and built a bridge with high efficiency ion transmission between low vacuum ionization source and high vacuum mass analyzer. In this paper, the principle, technology development, and application progress of ion funnel are reviewed, and the future prospects are prospected.     

Determination of sugars and cyclitols isolated from various morphological parts of Medicago sativa L

Plant research interest has increased all over the world, and a large body of evidence has been collected to show the huge potential of medicinal plants in various disease treatments. Medicago sativa L., known as alfalfa, is a rich source of biologically active components and secondary metabolites and was frequently used from the ancient times both as fodder crop and as a traditional medicine in the treatment of various diseases. Cyclitols, naturally occurring in this plant, have a particular interest for us due to their significant anti‐diabetic, antioxidant, anti‐inflammatory, and anti‐cancer properties. In the present study we revealed the isolation, the identification, and the quantification of some cyclitols and sugars extracted from different morphological parts of alfalfa plant. Soxhlet extraction and solid phase extraction were used as extraction and purification methods, while for the analyses derivatization followed by gas chromatography with mass spectrometry was involved. The obtained results showed significant differences in the quantities of cyclitols and sugars found in the investigated morphological parts, ranging between 0.02 and 13.86 mg/g of plant in case of cyclitols, and in the range of 0.09 and 40.09 mg/g of plant for sugars. However, roots have the richest part of cyclitols and sugars in contrast to the leaves.     

Determination of a novel antifibrotic small molecule GDC‐3280 in human plasma and urine by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry to support its first‐in‐human clinical trial

A specific and robust LC–MS/MS method was developed and validated for the quantitative determination of GDC‐3280 in human plasma and urine. The nonspecific binding associated with urine samples was overcome by the addition of CHAPS. The sample volume was 25 μL for either matrix, and supported liquid extraction was employed for analyte extraction. d6‐GDC‐3280 was used as the internal standard. Linear standard curves (R² > 0.9956) were established from 5.00 to 5000 ng/mL in both matrices with quantitation extended to 50,000 ng/mL through dilution. In plasma matrix, the precision (RSD) ranged from 1.5 to 9.9% (intra‐run) and from 2.4 to 7.2% (inter‐run); the accuracy (RE) ranged from 96.1 to 107% (intra‐run) and from 96.7 to 104% (inter‐run). Similarly, in urine the precision was 1.5–6.2% (intra‐run) and 1.9–6.1% (inter‐run); the accuracy was 83.1–99.3% (intra‐run) and 87.1–98.3% (inter‐run). Good recovery (>94%) and negligible matrix effect were achieved in both matrices. Long‐term matrix stability was established for at least 703 days in plasma and 477 days in urine. Bench‐top stability of 25 h and five freeze–thaw cycles were also confirmed in both matrices. The method was successfully implemented in GDC‐3280's first‐in‐human trial for assessing its pharmacokinetic profiles.     

Ionic Pd/NHC Catalytic System Enables Recoverable Homogeneous Catalysis: Mechanistic Study and Application in the Mizoroki–Heck Reaction

N-Heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands are ubiquitously utilized in catalysis. A common catalyst design model assumes strong M–NHC binding in this metal–ligand framework. In contrast to this common assumption, we demonstrate here that lability and controlled cleavage of the M−NHC bond (rather than its stabilization) could be more important for high-performance catalysis at low catalyst concentrations. The present study reveals a dynamic stabilization mechanism with labile metal–NHC binding and [PdX₃]⁻[NHC-R]⁺ ion pair formation. Access to reactive anionic palladium intermediates formed by dissociation of the NHC ligands and plausible stabilization of the molecular catalyst in solution by interaction with the [NHC-R]⁺ azolium ion is of particular importance for an efficient and recyclable catalyst. These ionic Pd/NHC complexes allowed for the first time the recycling of the complex in a well-defined form with isolation at each cycle. Computational investigation of the reaction mechanism confirms a facile formation of NHC-free anionic Pd in polar media through either Ph–NHC coupling or reversible H–NHC coupling. The present study formulates novel ideas for M/NHC catalyst design.     

Side-on-End-on Coordination of Dinitrogen on a Polynuclear Vanadium Nitride Cluster Anion [V5N5]−

The side-on-end-on coordination of N₂ can be very important to activate and functionalize this very stable molecule. However, such coordination has rarely been reported. This study reports a gas-phase species (a polynuclear vanadium nitride cluster anion [V₅N₅]⁻) that can capture N₂ efficiently (12 %), and the quantum chemistry modelling suggests an unusual side-on-end-on coordination. The cluster anions were generated by laser ablation and the reaction with N₂ has been characterized by mass spectrometry, photoelectron imaging spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations. The back-donation interactions between the localized d–d bonding orbitals on the low-coordinated dual metal (V) sites and the antibonding π* orbitals of N₂ are the driving forces to adsorb N₂ with a high binding energy (about 2.0 eV).