The enormity of the zinc deficiency problem and available solutions; an overview

The societal cost of micronutrient deficiency (MND) or the “hidden hunger” is in millions of dollars/year, reducing the GDP of some countries by as much as 11%. Zn is an important micronutrient for both plants and animals. An estimated 17% of the world population, or around 1.1 billion people, are at the risk of zinc (Zn) deficiency. The deficiency has been related to adverse pregnancy outcomes, stunted growth, premature deaths, immune system dysfunctions, neuro-behavioral disorders, and recently with the failure to recover from COVID-19. These health risks associated with Zn deficiency have compelled FAO and WHO to recommend Zn fortification of diet. Correcting Zn deficiency is a challenge due to several reasons. Close to half of the agricultural soils are Zn deficient, and chemical Zn fertilizers are costly and ineffective. Developing Zn-rich crops through plant breeding and genetic engineering is challenging. Zn-dense diet is costly and cannot be implemented in the low-income region most affected by Zn deficiency. Lack of consensus among regulatory bodies on defining and diagnosing Zn deficiency in plants and Humans. Awareness and other sociocultural issues. Among the most important available solutions are zinc biofortification of the cereal crops, use of zinc biofertilizers, development of Zn-efficient crops with reduced phytate content. The use of Zn supplements, dietary modification, and diversification, especially with fish, are proposed as the most accessible and affordable solutions. Awareness programs in areas suffering the most from Zn deficiency are required. Despite the suggestions from FAO and WHO, global efforts to combat Zn deficiency matching those for combating diseases like HIV are not in place. Coordinated efforts of the international community, especially policy-makers, agricultural scientists, dieticians, physicians, and others, are required to address the issue of hidden hunger.     

Development of GC–MS/MS method for environmental monitoring of 49 pesticide residues in food commodities in Al-Rass,Al-Qassim region,Saudi Arabia

The harmful effects of pesticide residues are a threat to our health. Therefore, the current study aimed to validate a simple method for the determination of pesticide residues in commonly consumed fruits and vegetables from Al-Rass, Al-Qassim region, Saudi Arabia. A total of 1430 samples were collected from a local market and then analyzed for monitoring of 49 pesticide residues. A quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) multi-residue extraction method followed by gas chromatography equipped with triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) was successfully implemented. This 17-min-run analytical method detects and quantifies pesticide residues with acceptable validation performance parameters in terms of sensitivity, selectivity, linearity, the limit of quantification, accuracy, and precision. The linear range of the calibration curves ranged from 10 to 300 µg/L, all the pesticide LODs ranged from 0.0005 to 0.0024 mg/kg, and the pesticide LOQs ranged from 0.0011 to 0.0047 mg/kg. The recovery values at the three fortification levels ranged from 78 % to 107 %, and the precision values (expressed as RSD%) were less than 20 % for all of the investigated analytes. The results showed that 138 (9.65 %) of the analyzed samples were contaminated with pesticide residues, 40 (2.80 %) of the analyzed samples exceeded the maximum residue limit (MRL) of the European Commission regulations (EC) for pesticides residues, 98 (6.85 %) of the analyzed samples were contaminated with residues below the MRL, and 1292 (90.35 %) of the analyzed samples were pesticide residue-free. Coriander contained the highest percentage (46.88 %) of pesticide residues, particularly tetradifon that representing 18.75 % noncompliance with the MRL, followed by parsley, with 20.59 % pesticide residues (10.29 % non-compliance). Multiple pesticide residues were observed most frequently in tomatoes and dates which were contaminated with buprofezin and ethion respectively.     

L-Glutamic acid loaded collagen chitosan composite scaffold as regenerative medicine for the accelerated healing of diabetic wounds

Diabetic wounds (DWs) are characterized by prolonged inflammation, which poses a significant challenge for clinicians and researchers to promote healing. In this study, we fabricate L-Glutamic acid (LGA) loaded collagen/chitosan (COL-CS) composite scaffold for the accelerated healing of DW. The characterization outcomes of the composite scaffold revealed that a crosslinked scaffold holds optimum porosity, low matrix degradation, and sustained drug release in contrast to a non-crosslinked scaffold. In vitro, LGA composite scaffolds have not exhibited any toxicity on 3T3L1 cell lines. In vivo, the LGA composite scaffold has shown significantly (p < 0.001), higher rates of wound contraction than those in control and COL-CS scaffold treated groups. In addition, MMP-9 levels were also significantly reduced in LGA composite scaffold-treated group compared with those in the control and COL-CS scaffold treated group. Thus, the LGA composite scaffold may serve as a promising therapy in DW due to its unique modulatory effect on inflammatory biomarker MMP-9.     

Magnetically recyclable Schiff-based palladium nanocatalyst [Fe3O4@SiNSB-Pd] and its catalytic applications in Heck reaction

A magnetically separable palladium nanocatalyst has been synthesized through the immobilization of palladium onto 3-aminopropylphenanthroline Schiff based functionalized silica coated superparamagnetic Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles. The nanocatalyst (Fe₃O₄@SiNSB-Pd) was fully characterized using several spectroscopic techniques, such as FT-IR, HR-SEM, TEM, XRD, ICP, and XPS. The microscopic image of Fe₃O₄ showed spherical shape morphology and had an average size of 150 nm. The Pd-nanoparticles exhibited an average size 3.5 ± 0.6 nm. The successful functionalization of Fe₃O₄@SiNSB-Pd was identified by FT-IR spectroscopy and the appearance of palladium species in Fe₃O₄@SiNSB-Pd was confirmed by XRD analysis. While XPS has been utilized for the determination of the chemical oxidation state of palladium species in Fe₃O₄@SiNSB-Pd. Several activated and deactivated arene halides and olefines were employed for Mizoroki-Heck cross-coupling reactions in the presence of Fe₃O₄@SiNSB-Pd, each of which produced the respective cross-coupling products with excellent yields. The Fe₃O₄@SiNSB-Pd shows good reactivity and reusability for up to seven consecutive cycles.     

An innovative SiO2-pyrazole nanocomposite for Zn(II) and Cr(III) ions effective adsorption and anti-sulfate-reducing bacteria from the produced oilfield water

Novel SiO₂-pyrazole (SiO₂-PYZ) nanocomposite was introduced for the elimination of Zn(II) and Cr(III) from oil reservoir water. Characterization analysis of prepared SiO₂-PYZ nanocomposite was investigated using SEM, FTIR, TGA, XRD, TEM, and BET. Studying the effects and optimization of the parameters such as retention time, pH, initial Cr(III) and Zn(II) ions concentrations, adsorbent dosage, and temperature were examined. For kinetics investigation, the pseudo-second-order (PSO) model matches the adsorption process effectively under different operating conditions. After applying two other isotherm models (Langmuir and Freundlich), the experimental data was adequately equipped with Langmuir, R² = 1. The thermodynamic results pointed that the adsorption of Zn(II) and Cr(III) ions was spontaneous, endothermic, and physisorption reaction. At pH 12, the influence of more than one ion, such as Ca(II) and Na(I), was checked, and the results revealed that this conjugate substance was highly selective to Cr(III). After washing with water in multiple cycles, the adsorbed material was regenerated with 0.1 M HCl and subsequently reused without deterioration in its case cavities. Interestingly, SiO₂-PYZ was highly effective against sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in the petroleum field.     

核酸工具酶辅助的金属稳定同位素标记方法在生物分析中的应用

本文主要概述了近年来核酸工具酶辅助的基于金属稳定同位素标记的电感耦合等离子体质谱(ICP-MS)检测方法在生物分析中的发展和应用,简要介绍了该方法在蛋白质、核酸及一些生物小分子检测中的应用。最后对核酸工具酶辅助的基于金属稳定同位素标记的电感耦合等离子体质谱(ICP-MS)检测方法的发展前景做了展望。     

-电感耦合等离子体质谱法测定硅锰冶炼渣中8种金属元素

实验采用HCl-HNO₃-HF-HClO₄混合酸为消解体系对样品进行前处理,加入1.0 mL盐酸羟胺溶液(100 g/L)溶解残渣,选择合适的同位素,以¹⁰³Rh为内标测定Cr、Co、Ni、Cu、Zn和Cd,以¹⁹³Ir为内标测定Tl和Pb,建立了电感耦合等离子体质谱(ICP-MS)法测定硅锰冶炼渣中8种重金属元素的方法。实验发现,样品前处理选择HCl∶HNO₃∶HF∶HClO₄=5∶5∶5∶1,并在复溶阶段加入1.0 mL盐酸羟胺溶液(100 g/L)可以完全消解样品,实验采用KED模式和干扰系数校正法消除质谱干扰,样品中待测元素的测定结果不受基体成分的干扰。通过绘制校准曲线及测定流程空白,各元素校准曲线的相关系数均大于0.9999,方法检出限为0.006~0.19 mg/kg,方法定量限为0.018~0.57 mg/kg。对硅锰渣实际样品进行测定,各元素的相对标准偏差(RSD,n=11)在0.83%~4.1%,加标回收率为94.7%~106%;经过人员比对实验,相对偏差为-4.54%~4.24%。测定结果稳定可靠,能满足硅锰冶炼渣中8种微量金属元素含量的分析检测要求。     

Coinage Metal Complexes of Bis(quinoline-2-ylmethyl)phenylphosphine-Simple Reactions Can Lead to Unprecedented Results

The different coordination behavior of the flexible yet sterically demanding, hemilabile P,N ligand bis(quinoline-2-ylmethyl)phenylphosphine ( bqmpp ) towards selected Cu^I, Ag^I and Au^I species is described. The resulting X-ray crystal structures reveal interesting coordination geometries. With [Cu(MeCN)₄]BF₄, compound 1 [Cu₂(bqmpp)₂](BF₄)₂ is obtained, wherein the copper(I) atoms display a distorted square planar and square pyramidal geometry. The steric demand and π-stacking of the ligand allow for a short Cu⋅⋅⋅Cu distance (2.588(9) Å). Cu^I complex 2 [Cu₄Cl₃(bqmpp)₂]BF₄ contains a rarely observed Cu₄Cl₃ cluster, probably enabled by dichloromethane as the chloride source. In the cluster, even shorter Cu⋅⋅⋅Cu distances (2.447(1) Å) are present. The reaction of Ag[SbF₆] with the ligand leads to a dinuclear compound ( 3 ) in solution as confirmed by ³¹P{¹H} NMR spectroscopy. During crystallization, instead of the expected phosphine complex 3 , a tris(quinoline-2-ylmethyl)bisphenyl-phosphine ( tqmbp ) compound [Ag₂(tqmbp)₂](SbF₆)₂ 4 is formed by elimination of quinaldine. The Au(I) compound [Au₂(bqmpp)₂]PF₆ ( 5 ) is prepared as expected and shows a linear arrangement of two phosphine ligands around Au^I.     

Galvanostatically Deposited PtNi Thin-Films as Electrocatalysts for the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

The synthesis of hybrid platinum materials is fundamental to enable alkaline water electrolysis for cost-effective H₂ generation. In this work, we have used a galvanostatic method to co-deposit PtNi films onto polycrystalline gold. The surface concentrations of Ni (Γ_Ni) and Pt (Γ_Pt) were calculated from electrochemical measurements; the Γ_Pt/Γ_Ni ratio and electrocatalytic activity of these materials towards hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in 1 M KOH show a strong dependence on the current density pulse applied during the electrodeposition. Analysis of the Tafel parameters hints that, on these deposits, HER proceeds through a Volmer-Heyrovsky mechanism. The galvanostatically deposited PtNi layers present a high current output per Pt gram, 3199 A g_Pt⁻¹, which is significantly larger compared to other PtNi-based materials obtained by more extended and more complex synthesis methods.     

An Electrochemical Way to Generate Amphiphiles from Hydrazones for the Synthesis of 1,2,4-Triazole Scaffold Cyclic Compounds

An electro-oxidative cyclization pathway in which hydrazones are selected as starting materials to generate amphiphiles by reacting with benzylamines and benzamides was reported. This strategy successfully prepared a series of 1,2,4-triazoles in satisfactory yields. Moreover, the use of cheap stainless steel as the anode, the feasibility to conduct the transformation as a one-pot reaction and the proof that scaling-up these reactions is possible make this transformation attractive for potential application in industry.