Determination of sulfonamides in swine muscle after salting-out assisted liquid extraction with acetonitrile coupled with back-extraction by a water/acetonitrile/dichloromethane ternary component system prior to high-performance liquid chromatography

A salting-out assisted liquid extraction coupled with back-extraction by a water/acetonitrile/dichloromethane ternary component system combined with high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection (HPLC–DAD) was developed for the extraction and determination of sulfonamides in solid tissue samples. After the homogenization of the swine muscle with acetonitrile and salt-promoted partitioning, an aliquot of 1 mL of the acetonitrile extract containing a small amount of dichloromethane (250–400 μL) was alkalinized with diethylamine. The clear organic extract obtained by centrifugation was used as a donor phase and then a small amount of water (40–55 μL) could be used as an acceptor phase to back-extract the analytes in the water/acetonitrile/dichloromethane ternary component system. In the back-extraction procedure, after mixing and centrifuging, the sedimented phase would be water and could be withdrawn easily into a microsyringe and directly injected into the HPLC system. Under the optimal conditions, recoveries were determined for swine muscle fortified at 10 ng/g and quantification was achieved by matrix-matched calibration. The calibration curves of five sulfonamides showed linearity with the coefficient of estimation above 0.998. Relative recoveries for the analytes were all from 96.5 to 109.2% with relative standard deviation of 2.7–4.0%. Preconcentration factors ranged from 16.8 to 30.6 for 1 mL of the acetonitrile extract. Limits of detection ranged from 0.2 to 1.0 ng/g.     

Multiresidue analysis of 83 pesticides and 12 dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls in wine by gas chromatography–time-of-flight mass spectrometry

A multiresidue method is described for simultaneous estimation of 83 pesticides and 12 dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in red and white wines. The samples (20 mL wine, acidified with 20 mL 1% HCl) were extracted with 10 mL ethyl acetate (+20 g sodium sulphate) and cleaned by dispersive solid-phase extraction (DSPE) with anhydrous calcium chloride and Florisil successively. The final extract (5 mL) was solvent exchanged to 1 mL of cyclohexane:ethyl acetate (9:1), further cleaned by DSPE with 25 mg primary secondary amine sorbent and analyzed by gas chromatography–time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC–TOF-MS) within 31 min run time. The limits of quantification of most analytes were ≤10–20 μg/L. Acidification of wine prior to extraction prevented hydrolysis of organophosphorous pesticides as well as dicofol, whereas treatment with CaCl₂ minimized the fatty acid co-extractives significantly. Solvent exchange to cyclohexane:ethyl acetate (9:1) further minimized the co-extractives. Recoveries at 5, 10 and 20 ng/mL were >80% for most analytes except cyprodinil, buprofezin and iprodione. The expanded uncertainties at 10 ng/mL were <20% for most analytes. Intra-laboratory precision in terms of Horwitz ratio of all the analytes was below 0.5, suggesting ruggedness of the method. Effectively, the method detection limit for most analytes was as low as up to 1 ng/mL in both red and white wine, except for cyfluthrin and cypermethrin.     

On-column liquid–liquid–liquid microextraction coupled with base stacking as a dual preconcentration method for capillary zone electrophoresis

A simple and efficient dual preconcentration method of on-column liquid–liquid–liquid microextraction (LLLME) coupled with base stacking was developed for capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) in this paper. Four N-methyl carbamates were used as target compounds to evaluate the enrichment means. The carbamates in sample solutions (donor phase) were extracted into a dodecanol phase immobilized on a porous hollow fiber, hydrolyzed and back extracted into 0.20 μL running buffer (acceptor phase) of 30 mmol/L methylamine hydrochloride (pH 11.6) containing 0.5 mmol/L tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide inside the hollow fiber, stacked further with 0.5 mol/L NaOH injected at −10 kV for 60 s, and separated by CZE. Analytical parameters affecting the LLLME, base stacking and CZE were investigated, including sample solution volume, pH and temperature, extraction time, stirring rate, buffer component, buffer pH, NaOH concentration, stacking time, etc. The enrichment factors of the carbamates were higher than 1100. The relative standard deviation (RSD) of peak height and limits of detection (LODs) were 4.5–5.5% (n = 6) and 2–4 ng/mL (S/N = 3) for standard solutions, respectively. The proposed method was applied to the analysis of vegetable and fruit samples with the RSD less than 6.0% (n = 3) and LODs of 6–10 ng/g (S/N = 3). The calibration solutions were prepared by diluting the stock solutions with blank sample solutions, and the calibration concentrations ranged from 0.012 to 1.0 μg/mL (r > 0.9951). The analytical results demonstrated that the LLLME coupled with base stacking was a simple, convenient and reliable on-column sample pretreatment method for the analysis of anionic analytes in CZE.     

On-line stacking and sweeping capillary electrophoresis for detecting heroin metabolites in human urine

Heroin metabolites including morphine, codeine, and 6-acetylmorphine were determined by cation-selective exhaustive injection and sweeping micellar electrokinetic chromatography (CSEI–sweep-MEKC). Liquid–liquid extraction was used for urine pretreatment. An uncoated fused silica capillary (Ld = 30 cm, 50 μm ID) was filled with phosphate buffer (50 mM, pH 2.5) containing 30% methanol, then high conductivity buffer (100 mM phosphate, 41.3 kPa for 18 s) was followed. Samples were injected electrokinetically (20 kV, 300 s). The sweeping and separation were performed at −25 kV using phosphate buffer (20 mM, pH 2.5) and 80 mM sodium dodecyl sulfate. The baseline separation was done within 10 min. During method validation, the calibration curves were linear over a range of 50–500 ng/mL (r ≧ 0.994). The RSD and RE values in intra-day and inter-day assays were all below 20%, which showed good precision and accuracy. Their detection limits were 10 ng/mL (S/N = 3). The optimized method was applied to determine real urine samples from addicts. These samples were confirmed by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry.     

Determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in food samples by automated on-line in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography-fluorescence detection

A simple and sensitive automated method, consisting of in-tube solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography-fluorescence detection (HPLC-FLD), was developed for the determination of 15 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in food samples. PAHs were separated within 15 min by HPLC using a Zorbax Eclipse PAH column with a water/acetonitrile gradient elution program as the mobile phase. The optimum in-tube SPME conditions were 20 draw/eject cycles of 40 μL of sample using a CP-Sil 19CB capillary column as an extraction device. Low- and high-molecular weight PAHs were extracted effectively onto the capillary coating from 5% and 30% methanol solutions, respectively. The extracted PAHs were readily desorbed from the capillary by passage of the mobile phase, and no carryover was observed. Using the in-tube SPME HPLC-FLD method, good linearity of the calibration curve (r > 0.9972) was obtained in the concentration range of 0.05–2.0 ng/mL, and the detection limits (S/N = 3) of PAHs were 0.32–4.63 pg/mL. The in-tube SPME method showed 18–47 fold higher sensitivity than the direct injection method. The intra-day and inter-day precision (relative standard deviations) for a 1 ng/mL PAH mixture were below 5.1% and 7.6% (n = 5), respectively. This method was applied successfully to the analysis of tea products and dried food samples without interference peaks, and the recoveries of PAHs spiked into the tea samples were >70%. Low-molecular weight PAHs such as naphthalene and pyrene were detected in many foods, and carcinogenic benzo[a]pyrene, at relatively high concentrations, was also detected in some black tea samples. This method was also utilized to assess the release of PAHs from tea leaves into the liquor.     

Determination of patulin in fruit juice and dried fruit samples by in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry

A simple and sensitive method for the determination of patulin in fruit juice and dried fruit samples was developed using a fully automated method consisting of in-tube solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS). Patulin was separated within 5 min by high-performance liquid chromatography using a Synergi MAX-RP 80A column and water/acetonitrile (80/20, v/v) as the mobile phase. Electrospray ionization conditions in the negative ion mode were optimized for MS detection of patulin. The pseudo-molecular ion [M−H]⁻ was used to detect patulin in selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode. The optimum in-tube SPME conditions were 25 draw/eject cycles of 40 μL of sample using a Carboxen 1006 PLOT capillary column as an extraction device. The extracted patulin was readily desorbed from the capillary by passage of the mobile phase, and no carry-over was observed. Using the in-tube SPME LC–MS with SIM method, good linearity of the calibration curve (r = 0.9996) was obtained in the concentration range of 0.5–20 ng/mL using ¹³C₃-patulin as an internal standard, and the detection limit (S/N = 3) of patulin was 23.5 pg/mL. The in-tube SPME method showed >83-fold higher sensitivity than the direct injection method (10 μL injection volume). The within-day and between-day precision (relative standard deviations) were below 0.8% and 5.0% (n = 6), respectively. This method was applied successfully for the analysis of fruit juice and dried fruit samples without interference peaks. The recoveries of patulin spiked into apple juice were >92%, and the relative standard deviations were <4.5%. Patulin was detected at ng/mL levels in various commercial apple juice samples.     

Quantification of flavan-3-ols and phenolic acids in milk-based food products by reversed-phase liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

This article reports the development and validation of a liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) method for the comprehensive quantification of flavan-3-ol and phenolic acid constituents of milk-based food products. Isotope dilution-based sample preparation consisted of protein precipitation using acidic methanol enriched with the stable isotope labelled internal standards and ultrafiltration to preserve overall polyphenol composition, but to eliminate milk proteins in order to comply with LC. Reversed-phase liquid chromatography was optimized to achieve separation of 22 analytes in 8 min in order to reduce suppression effects, achieve a wide dynamic range and, most importantly, to resolve isomeric compounds. Negative-ion electrospray mass spectrometric detection and fragmentation of analytes was optimized, final transitions were selected for maximized selectivity, reliable quantification and reduction of false positives. The quantitative performance of the method was validated, the main features include: (1) range of lower limits of detection 5–15 ng/mL for flavan-3-ols, 60–100 ng/mL for procyanidins, 1–60 ng/mL for other phenolic acids, (2) lower limits of quantification 15–45 ng/mL for flavan-3-ols, 200–300 ng/mL for procyanidins, 3–200 ng/mL for other phenolic acids, (3) averaged intra-day precision 9.5%, (4) calibrated range 60–300,000 ng/mL for flavan-3-ols, 900–900,000 ng/mL for procyanidins, 9–225,000 ng/mL for other phenolic acids, (5) averaged accuracy 99.5%. Applications for yoghurt and ice-cream products are given. The presented data suggest that this method will help to better characterize the polyphenol composition of milk-based food products for quality control, assessment of dietary intake and for polyphenol bioavailability/bioefficacy studies.     

Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography: an application for the simultaneous determination of suspected fragrance allergens in rinse-off products

The feasibility of microwave-accelerated derivatization for capillary electrophoresis (CE) with laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) detection was evaluated. The derivatization reaction was performed in a domestic microwave oven. Histidine (His), 1-methylhistidine (1-MH) and 3-methylhistidine (3-MH) were selected as test analytes and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) was chosen as a fluorescent derivatizing reagent. Parameters that may affect the derivatization reaction and/or subsequent CE separation were systematically investigated. Under optimized conditions, the microwave-accelerated derivatization reaction was successfully completed within 150 s, compared to 4-24 h in a conventional water-bath derivatization process. This will remarkably reduce the overall analysis time and increase sample throughput of CE-LIF. The detection limits of this method were found to be 0.023 ng/mL for His, 0.023 ng/mL for 1-MH, and 0.034 ng/mL for 3-MH, respectively, comparable to those obtained using traditional derivatization protocols. The proposed method was characterized in terms of precision, linearity, accuracy and successfully applied for rapid and sensitive determination of these analytes in human urine.     

Liquid-phase deposition of silica nanoparticles into a capillary for in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography

A silica nanoparticle (NP)-deposited capillary fabricated by liquid-phase deposition (LPD) and modified with octadecyl groups was introduced for in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography with UV detection (in-tube SPME–HPLC). The resultant capillary (60 cm × 50 μm I.D.) was demonstrated to be of higher extraction capacity by comparing with an octadecyl-grafted bare capillary and an octadecyl-grafted silica-coated capillary that was prepared by sol–gel chemistry. Two groups of compounds, endocrine disruptors and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, were used as model analytes to further evaluate extraction capacity of the silica NP-deposited capillary, and its reproducibility and stability was also investigated. The extraction time profiles were monitored for all the chemicals, and their limits of detection were calculated to be in the range of 0.42–0.78 and 0.034–0.19 ng/mL with RSD values of peak area less than 4.6%.     

Determination of aflatoxins in food samples by automated on-line in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry

A simple and sensitive automated method for determination of aflatoxins (B1, B2, G1, and G2) in nuts, cereals, dried fruits, and spices was developed consisting of in-tube solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS). Aflatoxins were separated within 8 min by high-performance liquid chromatography using a Zorbax Eclipse XDB-C8 column with methanol/acetonitrile (60/40, v/v): 5 mM ammonium formate (45:55) as the mobile phase. Electrospray ionization conditions in the positive ion mode were optimized for MS detection of aflatoxins. The pseudo-molecular ions [M+H]⁺ were used to detect aflatoxins in selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode. The optimum in-tube SPME conditions were 25 draw/eject cycles of 40 μL of sample using a Supel-Q PLOT capillary column as an extraction device. The extracted aflatoxins were readily desorbed from the capillary by passage of the mobile phase, and no carryover was observed. Using the in-tube SPME LC–MS with SIM method, good linearity of the calibration curve (r > 0.9994) was obtained in the concentration range of 0.05–2.0 ng/mL using aflatoxin M1 as an internal standard, and the detection limits (S/N = 3) of aflatoxins were 2.1–2.8 pg/mL. The in-tube SPME method showed >23-fold higher sensitivity than the direct injection method (10 μL injection volume). The within-day and between-day precision (relative standard deviations) at the concentration of 1 ng/mL aflatoxin mixture were below 3.3% and 7.7% (n = 5), respectively. This method was applied successfully to analysis of food samples without interference peaks. The recoveries of aflatoxins spiked into nuts and cereals were >80%, and the relative standard deviations were <11.2%. Aflatoxins were detected at <10 ng/g in several commercial food samples.     

Gas–liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry methodology for the quantitation of estrogenic contaminants in bile of fish exposed to wastewater treatment works effluents and from wild populations

Fish can be exposed to a complex mixture of chemical contaminants arising from the exposure to wastewater treatment works (WwTWs) effluents. Some of these contaminants are estrogenic and have been associated with feminisation of male fish and the presence of populations containing intersex individuals. However the detection of trace levels (ng/L) of estrogenic chemicals surface waters can be difficult and does not give information on the exposure of aquatic organisms to these contaminants. In this study we assessed whether the analysis of estrogenic substances that bioconcentrate in fish bile can be used to detect the exposure of fish to feminising contaminants in receiving waters and effluents, and thus facilitate their monitoring of these substances in aquatic environments. Estrogenic metabolites in bile were deconjugated using enzymatic hydrolysis and partially purified by solid phase extraction. Steroidal and xenoestrogens were derivatized to their trimethylsilyl ethers and quantified by gas–liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) using multiple reaction monitoring. The method was validated using spiked bile samples from immature female rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) as well as bile from sexually mature roach (Rutilus rutilus) that had been exposed to either tap water or an undiluted estrogenic effluent for 10 days or captured from a river site downstream of a WwTWs effluent discharge. The mean recovery of target analytes from spiked bile was between 86 and 99% and the limit of detection was between 0.1 and 0.7 ng/mL bile for bisphenol A (BPA), 17β-estradiol (E2), estrone (E1) and 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), and 11, 60 and 327 ng/mL bile for branched nonyl chain isomeric mixtures of 4-nonylphenolethoxylate (NP1EO), 4-nonylphenol (NP) and 4-nonylphenoldiethoxylate (NP2EO), respectively. All target analytes were detected in bile from roach exposed directly to a WwTWs effluent, with concentrations between 6–13 μg/mL bile for NP, 18–21 μg/mL for NP1EO, 75–135 μg/mL for NP2EO, 0.7–2.5 μg/mL for BPA, E2 and E1 and 17–29 ng/mL for EE2. With the exception of NP2EO, all analytes were detected in at least 2 out of the 5 fish sampled from the River Thames. BPA and NP1EO were detected in all three reference fish held in tap water indicating possible contamination from laboratory plastics. The work shows that analysis of 20–100 μL quantities of bile could be a useful approach in detecting exposure to mixtures of estrogenic contaminants taken up by fish from WwTW effluents and has the potential for monitoring the efficacy of remediation strategies that may be adopted for reduction of these endocrine disrupting chemicals in the aquatic environment.     

Application of silica-based monolith as solid phase extraction cartridge for extracting polar compounds from urine

The silica monolith with ionizable silanol groups and large surface area was found able to function as an offline cation exchange solid phase extraction (SPE) cartridge for extracting polar analytes. The prepared cartridge was housed in a 2-mL syringe fixed over a SPE vacuum manifold. The unique property of this silica monolithic cartridge was demonstrated by extracting epinephrine, normetanephrine and metanephrine from urine samples. These analytes were chosen as model compounds for testing because of their high hydrophilicity, and being candidates monitored for clinical diagnosis. The extracted analytes, after concentration and reconstitution were then quantitated by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometer (HPLC/ESI/MS). Multiple reactions monitoring was carried out with transitions: 184 → 107, 184 → 134 and 198 → 148 for analyzing epinephrine, normetanephrine and metanephrine, respectively. The limit of detection was 3 ng/mL for metanephrine and 5 ng/mL for normetanephrine and epinephrine. The relative standard deviations of measurements ranged from 2 to 10%. The sorbent offered good linearity with coefficient of determination (r²) > 0.99, over a concentration range of 20-200 ng/mL. The relative recoveries ranged from 60 to 67%, 55 to 59% and 99 to 105% for epinephrine, normetanephrine and metanephrine, respectively. The prepared cartridge had shown potential and was found robust in extracting the polar analytes repeatedly without any significant loss in efficiency.     

Simultaneous determination of five flavonoids in licorice using pressurized liquid extraction and capillary electrochromatography coupled with peak suppression diode array detection

Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) and capillary electrochromatography (CEC) methods were developed for the simultaneous determination of five flavonoids, namely liquiritin, isoliquiritin, ononin, liquiritigenin and isoliquiritigenin, in licorice using baicalein as internal standard (IS). Peak suppression technique was used for the quantification of ononin because of its poor resolution with isoliquiritin. The analysis was performed on a Hypersil C₁₈ capillary (3 μm, 100 μm/25 cm) with a mixture of 10 mM phosphate buffer (pH 3.0)/ACN (65:35, v/v) as mobile phase running at 25 kV and 30 °C. The detection wavelengths were set at 275 nm (without reference wavelength for liquiritin and liquiritigenin), 360 nm (without reference wavelength for isoliquiritin and isoliquiritigenin) and 254 nm (with reference wavelength of 405 nm for ononin). All calibration curves showed good linearity (R² > 0.9993) within the test ranges. The LOD and LOQ were lower than 2.1 and 8.3 μg/mL, respectively. The RSDs of intra- and interday for relative peak areas of five analytes to IS were less than 3.8 and 4.7%, respectively, and the recoveries were 98.2–103.8%. The validated method was successfully applied to the quantitative analysis of five flavonoids in licorice, which is helpful to its quality control.     

Optimization of some experimental parameters in the electro membrane extraction of chlorophenols from seawater

An electro membrane extraction (EME) methodology was utilized to study the isolation of some environmentally important pollutants, such as chlorophenols, from aquatic media based upon the electrokinetic migration process. The analytes were transported by application of an electrical potential difference over a supported liquid membrane (SLM). A driving force of 10 V was applied to extract the analytes through 1-octanol, used as the SLM, into a strongly alkaline solution. The alkaline acceptor solution was subsequently analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet (HPLC-UV) detection. The parameters influencing electromigration, including volumes and pH of the donor and acceptor phases, the organic solvent used as the SLM, and the applied voltage and its duration, were investigated to find the most suitable extraction conditions. Since the developed method showed a rather high degree of selectivity towards pentachlorophenol (PCP), validation of the method was performed using this compound. An enrichment factor of 23 along with acceptable sample clean-up was obtained for PCP. The calibration curve showed linearity in the range of 0.5–1000 ng/mL with a coefficient of estimation corresponding to 0.999. Limits of detection and quantification, based on signal-to-noise ratios of 3 and 10, were 0.1 and 0.4 ng/mL, respectively. The relative standard deviation of the analysis at a PCP concentration of 0.5 ng/mL was found to be 6.8% (n = 6). The method was also applied to the extraction of this contaminant from seawater and an acceptable relative recovery of 74% was achieved at a concentration level of 1.0 ng/mL.     

Optimization of aptamer microarray technology for multiple protein targets

Aptamer-based microarrays for the quantitation of multiple protein analytes have been developed. A multiplex aptamer microarray was generated by printing two RNA aptamers (anti-lysozyme and anti-ricin) and two DNA aptamers (anti-IgE and anti-thrombin) on to either streptavidin (SA) or neutravidin (NA)-coated glass slides. However, substantial optimization was required in order to ensure the simultaneous function of the aptamer:analyte pairs. The effects of protein labeling, assay buffer, surface coating, and immobilization chemistry and orientation were investigated. A single buffer (PBS buffer containing 5 mM MgCl₂ and 0.1% Tween 20) was found to work well with all the aptamers, even though this was not the buffer originally used in their selection, while neutravidin-coated slides yielded a lower detection limit, wider detection range, and more uniform background than streptavidin-coated slides. Incubation with Cy3-labeled proteins yielded sensitive, target-specific, and dose-dependent responses to each protein. Target protein concentrations as low as 72 pg/mL (5 pM, lysozyme), 15 ng/mL (0.5 nM, ricin), 1.9 ng/mL (0.01 nM, IgE), and 170 ng/mL (5 nM, thrombin) could be detected. These results show that aptamer arrays can potentially be used with numerous proteins in parallel, furthering the notion that aptamer arrays may be useful in proteomics.     

Dynamic supported liquid membrane tip extraction of glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid followed by capillary electrophoresis with contactless conductivity detection

A dynamic supported liquid membrane tip extraction (SLMTE) procedure for the effective extraction and preconcentration of glyphosate (GLYP) and its metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) in water has been investigated. The SLMTE procedure was performed in a semi-automated dynamic mode and demonstrated a greater performance against a static extraction. Several important extraction parameters such as donor phase pH, cationic carrier concentration, type of membrane solvent, type of acceptor stripping phase, agitation and extraction time were comprehensively optimized. A solution of Aliquat-336, a cationic carrier, in dihexyl ether was selected as the supported liquid incorporated into the membrane phase. Quantification of GLYP and AMPA was carried out using capillary electrophoresis with contactless conductivity detection. An electrolyte solution consisting of 12 mM histidine (His), 8 mM 2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid (MES), 75 μM cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), 3% methanol, pH 6.3, was used as running buffer. Under the optimum extraction conditions, the method showed good linearity in the range of 0.01–200 μg/L (GLYP) and 0.1–400 μg/L (AMPA), acceptable reproducibility (RSD 5–7%, n = 5), low limits of detection of 0.005 μg/L for GLYP and 0.06 μg/L for AMPA, and satisfactory relative recoveries (90–94%). Due to the low cost, the SLMTE device was disposed after each run which additionally eliminated the possibility of carry-over between runs. The validated method was tested for the analysis of both analytes in spiked tap water and river water with good success.     

Direct determination of chlorophenols in water samples through ultrasound-assisted hollow fiber liquid–liquid–liquid microextraction on-line coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography

In this study we on-line coupled hollow fiber liquid–liquid–liquid microextraction (HF-LLLME), assisted by an ultrasonic probe, with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). In this approach, the target analytes – 2-chlorophenol (2-CP), 3-chlorophenol (3-CP), 2,6-dichlorophenol (2,6-DCP), and 3,4-dichlorophenol (3,4-DCP) – were extracted into a hollow fiber (HF) supported liquid membrane (SLM) and then back-extracted into the acceptor solution in the lumen of the HF. Next, the acceptor solution was withdrawn on-line into the HPLC sample loop connected to the HF and then injected directly into the HPLC system for analysis. We found that the chlorophenols (CPs) could diffuse quickly through two sequential extraction interfaces – the donor phase – SLM and the SLM – acceptor phase – under the assistance of an ultrasonic probe. Ultrasonication provided effective mixing of the extracted boundary layers with the bulk of the sample and it increased the driving forces for mass transfer, thereby enhancing the extraction kinetics and leading to rapid enrichment of the target analytes. We studied the effects of various parameters on the extraction efficiency, viz. the nature of the SLM and acceptor phase, the compositions of the donor and acceptor phases, the fiber length, the stirring rate, the ion strength, the sample temperature, the sonication conditions, and the perfusion flow rate. This on-line extraction method exhibited linearity (r² ≥ 0.998), sensitivity (limits of detection: 0.03–0.05 μg L⁻¹), and precision (RSD% ≤ 4.8), allowing the sensitive, simple, and rapid determination of CPs in aqueous solutions and water samples with a sampling time of just 2 min.     

Determination of fluoxetine and norfluoxetine enantiomers in human plasma by polypyrrole-coated capillary in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography-fluorescence detection

A sensitive, selective, and reproducible in-tube polypyrrole-coated capillary (PPY) solid-phase microextraction and liquid chromatographic method for fluoxetine and norfluoxetine enantiomers analysis in plasma samples has been developed, validated, and further applied to the analysis of plasma samples from elderly patients undergoing therapy with antidepressants. Important factors in the optimization of in-tube SPME efficiency are discussed, including the sample draw/eject volume, draw/eject cycle number, draw/eject flow-rate, sample pH, and influence of plasma proteins. Separation of the analytes was achieved with a Chiralcel OD-R column and a mobile phase consisting of potassium hexafluorophosphate 7.5 mM and sodium phosphate 0.25 M solution, pH 3.0, and acetonitrile (75:25, v/v) in the isocratic mode, at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. Detection was carried out by fluorescence absorbance at Ex/Em 230/290 nm. The multifunctional porous surface structure of the PPY-coated film provided high precision and accuracy for enantiomers. Compared with other commercial capillaries, PPY-coated capillary showed better extraction efficiency for all the analytes. The quantification limits of the proposed method were 10 ng/mL for R- and S-fluoxetine, and 15 ng/mL for R- and S-norfluoxetine, with a coefficient of variation lower than 13%. The response of the method for enantiomers is linear over a dynamic range, from the limit of quantification to 700 ng/mL, with correlation coefficients higher than 0.9940. The in-tube SPME/LC method can therefore be successfully used to analyze plasma samples from ageing patients undergoing therapy with fluoxetine.     

A fast and highly sensitive detection of cholesterol using polymer microfluidic devices and amperometric system

In this work, the rapid detection of cholesterol using poly(dimethylsiloxane) microchip capillary electrophoresis, based on the coupling of enzymatic assays and electrochemical detection, was developed. Direct amperometric detection for poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microchip capillary electrophoresis was successfully applied to quantify cholesterol levels. Factors influencing the performance of the method (such as the concentration and pH value of buffer electrolyte, concentration of cholesterol oxidase enzyme (ChOx), effect of solvent on the cholesterol solubility, and interferences) were carefully investigated and optimized. The migration time of hydrogen peroxide, product of the reaction, was less than 100 s when using 40 mM phosphate buffer at pH 7.0 as the running buffer, a concentration of 0.68 U/mL of the ChOx, a separation voltage of +1.6 kV, an injection time of 20 s, and a detection potential of +0.5 V. PDMS microchip capillary electrophoresis showed linearity between 38.7 μg/dL (1 μM) and 270.6 mg/dL (7 mM) for the cholesterol standard; the detection limit was determined as 38.7 ng/dL (1 nM). To demonstrate the potential of this assay, the proposed method was applied to quantify cholesterol in bovine serum. The percentages of recoveries were assessed over the range of 98.9-101.8%. The sample throughput was found to be 60 samples per hour. Therefore, PDMS microchip capillary electrophoresis, based on the coupling of enzymatic assays and electrochemical detection, is very rapid, accurate and sensitive method for the determination of cholesterol levels.     

Determination of fecal sterols by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry with solid-phase extraction and injection-port derivatization

Injection-port derivatization combined with solid-phase extraction (SPE) was developed and applied for the first time to determine five types of fecal sterols (coprostanol, cholestanol, epicholestanol, epicoprostanol and cholesterol) with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). In this method, silylation of fecal sterols was performed with N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) at GC injection-port. The factors influential to this technique such as injection-port temperature, purge-off time, derivatization reagent (BSTFA) volume, and the type of organic solvent were investigated. In addition, the conditions of SPE (including the type of SPE cartridge, the type of elution organic solvent) were also studied. After SPE followed by injection-port silylation by GC–MS, good linearity of analytes was achieved in the range of 0.02–10 ng/mL with coefficients of determination, R² > 0.995. Good reproducibility was obtained with relative standard deviation less than 19.6%. The limits of detection ranged from 1.3 ng/mL to 15 ng/mL (S/N = 3) in environmental water samples. Compared with traditional off-line silylation of fecal sterols performed with water bath (60 °C, 30 min), this injection-port silylation method is much simpler and convenient. The developed method has been successfully applied for the analysis of fecal sterols from real environmental water samples.