Development and validation of an ELISA kit for the detection of ricin toxins from biological specimens and environmental samples

Ricin is a toxin that can be easily extracted from seeds of Ricinus communis plants. Ricin is considered to be a major bio-threat as it can be freely and easily acquired in large quantities. A deliberate release of such toxin in civilian populations would very likely overwhelm existing public health systems, resulting in public fear and social unrest. There is currently no commercially available or FDA-approved prophylaxis such as vaccines, or therapeutic antitoxins or antidotes, available for ricin intoxication. Patient treatment is typically supportive care based on symptoms, often designed to reinforce the body’s natural response. This paper describes the development and validation of a robust ELISA test kit, which can be used to screen for ricin in biological specimens such as whole blood and faeces. Faecal specimens are shown in this study to have better diagnostic sensitivity and a wider diagnostic window compared to whole blood. From these results, it is concluded that faeces is the most suitable clinical specimen for diagnosis of ricin poisoning via the oral route. The ELISA test kit can also detect ricin in environmental samples. An advantage of this ELISA kit over other commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) detection kits currently on the market that are developed to screen environmental samples only is its ability to diagnose ricin poisoning from clinical specimens as well as detect ricin from environmental samples.     

Flow-injection spectrofluorometric determination of trace amounts of formaldehyde in water after derivatization with acetoacetanilide

A novel fluorophotometric method for formaldehyde determination in environmental waters was developed: the method does not require any enrichment procedures. A flow-injection analysis method for the spectrofluorometric determination of formaldehyde in waters, which is based on the reaction of formaldehyde with acetoacetanilide and ammonia, is proposed. The proposed method shows a good linearity from 0.50 to 40 × 10⁻⁷ M, and the limit of detection (LOD) of 3 × 10⁻⁹ M (0.09 ppb) is achievable. The sample throughput is 15 h⁻¹. One of the main advantages in the proposed method is that the reaction can be carried out at room temperature without any heating system. The effect of various interferences possibly present in the real water samples was investigated. Most cations and anions, as well as organic compounds, do not interfere with the determination of formaldehyde in environmental water samples. The proposed method is very simple, rapid, less expensive, and highly sensitive, and can be applied to the environmental water samples, such as rain, tap water and river water, at low concentration levels without any enrichment procedure.     

微流控纸芯片在环境分析检测中的应用

近年来,微流控纸芯片由于低成本、便携化、检测快等优点,在需要快速检测的环境分析领域中展现出了巨大的应用前景.该综述从微流控纸芯片在环境分析中的应用角度,总结归纳了微流控纸芯片在环境分析中的最新研究进展,并展望了其在未来的发展趋势与挑战.论文内容引用150余篇源于科学引文索引(SCI)与中文核心期刊中的相关论文.该综述包...     

Advantages and limitations of HPLC in environmental analysis

Summary The application of HPLC to environmental analysis is often hindered by difficulty not experienced in other areas of analysis. Usually the components being determined are at parts per million levels or less and are usually in sample matrices that can yield many interferences. In order to develop successful methodology the prime requirements for an HPLC system are column efficiency and the sensitivity and selectivity of the detection system. In this presentation, examples are given to illustrate how HPLC can be used to advantage by comparing it to gas chromatographic (GC) methods and even TLC methods. For many classes of compounds, such as halogenated hydrocarbons (pesticides, PCB’s, dioxins), the GC methods may be preferred. However, for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) HPLC with fluorescence detection has proven to be excellent for trace environmental analysis. Comparisons of HPLC with TLC for aflatoxins and with bioassays for paralytic shellfish toxins are made. Novel combinations such as headspace-HPLC analyses for SO₂ and HPLC-AA for organometallic compounds are discussed.     

Environmental performance metrics for daily use in synthetic chemistry

A simple quantitative approach to enable chemists to compare alternative chemical syntheses on the lab bench with respect to their resource usage and their potential environmental impact is proposed; this may be useful for the systematic design of more sustainable processes. We consider as metrics the mass index S(-1) and the environmental factor E to characterize quantitatively the reaction input and output, respectively. The potential environmental impact is estimated by using easily available data of each compound of the feed and of each compound of the waste. The calculations can easily be performed using EATOS-environmental assessment tool for organic syntheses.     

Progress and prospect of anodic oxidation for the remediation of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water and wastewater using diamond electrodes

Although diamond electrodes are widely used in the field of electroanalysis and sensing, their application in the field of environmental engineering has yet to be fully realized. Many research studies have considered their potential application in water and wastewater treatment, where the in-situ electrochemical process can avoid the need for chemical additives by facilitating the oxidation of pollutants on the electrode surface or mediated by electrochemically synthesized oxidants in solution. Diamond-based electro-oxidation can effectively treat a number of organic micropollutants and is now being evaluated for the abatement of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, which pose health concerns and are ubiquitous recalcitrant environmental contaminants. To move implementation of diamond-based electro-oxidation forward, the integration of modifications and codopants to yield more advanced electrode materials needs to be further developed and understood. The progress and current strategies associated with diamond electrode modifications for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances abatement as well as future considerations are discussed.     

Stated references for ensuring traceability of chemical measurements for long-term environmental monitoring

Traceability is now considered to be a key concept in chemical and biological measurement sciences. While this concept is increasingly used in many areas, it is still prone to misunderstandings with respect to more ‘classical' terms such as e.g. accuracy. Traceability implies that measurement data are linked to stated references through an unbroken chain of comparisons, all with stated uncertainties. What does the word ‘stated references' mean when it is applied to complex environmental analysis? This paper discusses how traceability can be conceived in the context of environmental monitoring, in particular the various stated references (documented standards, reference materials, environmental specimens) to which chemical environmental data may be linked to.     

Efficiency calibration of germanium detectors with internal standards

A simple experimental method for the efficiency calibration of germanium detectors especially for environmental samples is presented, using only the natural radionuclides in the sample. The method is based on the fact that for the energy range above 300 keV the full-energy-peak efficiency of a Ge detector can be described in a first order approximation by a linear interpolation curve in the log-log display with errors lying normally under 5%. Photons with different energies which are emitted from one radionuclide yield count rates which are correlated to the corresponding efficiencies. From this correlation one coefficient of the interpolation curve — a first order polynomial — can be calculated. The second coefficient can be obtained by the count rate of⁴⁰K, resulting from KCl, which is mixed homogeneously with the sample. Expecially for environmental samples with large volumes, this method is very useful, because it takes into account the self-absorption of photons in the sample.     

New concepts for radiometric measurements of environmental samples

The Radiation Detection and Nuclear Sciences Group at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has a long history in conducting measurements of radioisotopes for various applications. This experience includes ultra-low background measurements, arrays of germanium detectors, automated sampling and measurement systems and coincidence measurement systems. A recent lab-supported effort has been studying how these capabilities, both in terms of hardware and experience, can be leveraged to enable environmental sampling measurements. One area of interest is the release of fission products and actinides into the environment from a reactor incident. While the initial survey of this area is still under way, one isotope of interest that surfaced early in the study is ²³⁸Pu. Existing techniques to assay this isotope suffer from measurement challenges. In alpha counting, there can be significant interference with ²⁴¹Am, while in mass spectrometry, there can be interference with ²³⁸U. The authors are developing the concept for a detector that through coincidence counting techniques can distinguish ²³⁸Pu and ²⁴¹Am. In addition, we will design the system to conduct radiometric measurements of other plutonium isotopes to enable a direct comparison of those isotopes. We will present our concept of the detector system for ²³⁸Pu, as well as discuss other radiometric measurements of fission products and actinides with which we intend to advance the state of the art for environmental measurements.     

A perspective on environmental models and QSARs

A general review is presented of the roles of QSARs and mass balance models as tools for assessing the environmental fate and effects of chemicals of commerce. It is argued that all such chemicals must be assessed using a consistent and transparent methodology that uses chemical property data derived from QSARs, or experimental determinations when possible and applies evaluative or region-specific environmental models. These data and models enable an assessment to be made of the key chemical features of persistence, bioaccumulation, potential for long-range transport and toxicity. The other key feature is quantity used or discharged to the environment. A taxonomy of environmental models is presented in which it is suggested that rather than develop a single comprehensive model, the aim should be to establish a set of coordinated and consistent models treating evaluative and real environmental systems at a variety of scales from local to global and including food web models, organism-specific models and human exposure and pharmacokinetic models. The concentrations derived from these models can then be compared with levels judged to be of toxic significance. A brief account is given of perceived QSAR needs in terms of partitioning, reactivity, transport and toxicity data to support these models.     

Photoelectrochemical properties of TiO2 photocatalyst and its applications for environmental purification

In view of the situation that environmental issues become more serious day by day, recent studies on practical applications of TiO₂ photocatalysis for environmental purification are reviewed. Although the fundamental aspects and the mechanisms of TiO₂ photocatalysis have recently become quite well understood, effective photocatalytic environmental purifier, especially water purifier, could not be developed to the stage of real industrial technology. The removal rate of gaseous or aqueous contaminants is influenced by numerous parameters; UV light intensity, substrate concentration, O₂ partial pressure, humidity, substrate type, and so on. Moreover, TiO₂ photocatalyst essentially has a difficulty in decomposition of large amount of contaminants or refractory chemicals. As the solutions of these problems, combination with other processes such as advanced oxidation processes and improvement of the design of photocatalytic environmental purification systems are described. During the past several years, the strategies for effective design of the system are well discussed and evaluated. The reactor design for air- or water-purification can be classified into two main strategies: (1) enlargement of reactive surface area and (2) improvement of mass transfer. Based on these insights, very recent achievements for development of photocatalytic environmental purification system with our contribution in each aspect and future research directions are reviewed.     

Subsystem‐Based Theoretical Spectroscopy of Biomolecules and Biomolecular Assemblies

The absorption properties of chromophores in biomolecular systems are subject to several fine‐tuning mechanisms. Specific interactions with the surrounding protein environment often lead to significant changes in the excitation energies, but bulk dielectric effects can also play an important role. Moreover, strong excitonic interactions can occur in systems with several chromophores at close distances. For interpretation purposes, it is often desirable to distinguish different types of environmental effects, such as geometrical, electrostatic, polarization, and response (or differential polarization) effects. Methods that can be applied for theoretical analyses of such effects are reviewed herein, ranging from continuum and point‐charge models to explicit quantum chemical subsystem methods for environmental effects. Connections to physical model theories are also outlined. Prototypical applications to optical spectra and excited states of fluorescent proteins, biomolecular photoreceptors, and photosynthetic protein complexes are discussed.     

Rapid determination of actinides in asphalt samples

A new rapid method for the determination of actinides in asphalt samples has been developed that can be used in emergency response situations or for routine analysis. If a radiological dispersive device, improvised nuclear device or a nuclear accident such as the accident at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant in March, 2011 occurs, there will be an urgent need for rapid analyses of many different environmental matrices, including asphalt materials, to support dose mitigation and environmental clean-up. The new method for the determination of actinides in asphalt utilizes a rapid furnace step to destroy bitumen and organics present in the asphalt and sodium hydroxide fusion to digest the remaining sample. Sample preconcentration steps are used to collect the actinides and a new stacked TRU Resin + DGA Resin column method is employed to separate the actinide isotopes in the asphalt samples. The TRU Resin plus DGA Resin separation approach, which allows sequential separation of plutonium, uranium, americium and curium isotopes in asphalt samples, can be applied to soil samples as well.     

Development of two highly sensitive immunoassays for detection of copper ions and a suite of relevant immunochemicals

Availability of highly sensitive assays for metal ions can help monitor and manage the environmental and food contamination. In the present study, a monoclonal antibody against Copper(II)–ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid was used to develop two sensitive ELISAs for Cu(II) analysis. Cobalt(II)–EDTA–BSA was the coating antigen in a heterologous indirect competitive ELISA (hicELISA), whereas Co(II)–EDTA–BSA–horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was the enzyme tracer in a heterologous direct competitive ELISA (hdcELISA). Both ELISAs were validated for detecting the content of Cu(II) in environmental waters. The ELISA data agreed well with those from graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy. The methods of developing the Cu(II) hicELISA and hdcELISA are potentially applicable for developing ELISAs for other metals. The chelator–protein complexes such as EDTA–BSA and EDTA–BSA–HRP can form a suite of metal complexes having the consistent hapten density, location and orientation on the conjugates except the difference of the metal core, which can be used as ideal reagents to investigate the relationship between assay sensitivity and antibody affinities for the haptens and the analytes. The strategy of conjugating a haptenated protein directly with HRP can reduce the loss of HRP activity during the conjugation reaction and thus can be applicable for the development of ELISAs for small molecules.     

Distribution of Chlorinated Hydrocarbons in Different Ecosystems in Germany

Abstract

The German Environmental Specimen Bank (GESB) was established in 1985 as a permanent institution for the systematic collection, processing, characterization and storage of representative environmental samples from different ecosystems throughout Germany. Immediately after the reunification a special sampling campaign was performed in representative areas of the former GDR focusing on the assessment of the environmental pollution situation. These samples can be regarded as a basis for monitoring the development of spatial and temporal trends in Eastern Germany. Selected results about the determination of chlorinated hydrocarbons (CHC) in various bioindicators (earthworms, pigeon eggs, poplar leaves, pine shoots, breams) are presented. Particular emphasis is given to the comparsion of the CHC burden in East and West Germany with respect to different contamination sources.     

Rapid determination of 226Ra in environmental samples

A new rapid method for the determination of ²²⁶Ra in environmental samples has been developed at the Savannah River Site Environmental Lab (Aiken, SC, USA) that can be used for emergency response or routine sample analyses. The need for rapid analyses in the event of a Radiological Dispersive Device or Improvised Nuclear Device event is well-known. In addition, the recent accident at Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant in March, 2011 reinforces the need to have rapid analyses for radionuclides in environmental samples in the event of a nuclear accident. ²²⁶Ra (T1/2?=?1,620?years) is one of the most toxic of the long-lived alpha-emitters present in the environment due to its long life and its tendency to concentrate in bones, which increases the internal radiation dose of individuals. The new method to determine ²²⁶Ra in environmental samples utilizes a rapid sodium hydroxide fusion method for solid samples, calcium carbonate precipitation to preconcentrate Ra, and rapid column separation steps to remove interferences. The column separation process uses cation exchange resin to remove large amounts of calcium, Sr Resin to remove barium and Ln Resin as a final purification step to remove ²²⁵Ac and potential interferences. The purified ²²⁶Ra sample test sources are prepared using barium sulfate microprecipitation in the presence of isopropanol for counting by alpha spectrometry. The method showed good chemical recoveries and effective removal of interferences. The determination of ²²⁶Ra in environmental samples can be performed in less than 16?h for vegetation, concrete, brick, soil, and air filter samples with excellent quality for emergency or routine analyses. The sample preparation work takes less than 6?h. ²²⁵Ra (T1/2?=?14.9?day) tracer is used and the ²²⁵Ra progeny ²¹⁷At is used to determine chemical yield via alpha spectrometry. The rapid fusion technique is a rugged sample digestion method that ensures that any refractory radium particles are effectively digested. The preconcentration and column separation steps can also be applied to aqueous samples with good results.     

Hourglass‐Shaped Dendrimers on Surfaces: A Comparison of Different Scanning‐Tunneling‐Microscopy Approaches

Large molecules adsorbed on surfaces can be analyzed by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) under various environmental conditions: on a dry surface in air or vacuum, and at the solid‐liquid interface. However, can measurements under dissimilar conditions be compared, e. g., when sample A was studied at the solid‐liquid interface and sample B in a dry environment? Only rarely can the same substance be examined with more than one approach, since completely different set‐up and preparations are necessary. Furthermore, few substances are suitable for several methods of sample preparation and characterization. We have chosen a large, flexible, nonplanar molecule, namely an alkoxy‐substituted second‐generation dendritic compound with a chiral core unit, which is peculiar for its ‘hourglass' conformation. The assembly properties have been explored by STM both in solution‐cast self‐organized monolayers (SOMs) and multilayer films, as well as at the solid‐liquid interface. The complexity and limits of the three approaches applied to our hourglass‐shaped dendritic compound are discussed. Depending on the approach and environmental conditions, several quality levels of image resolution could be achieved; measurements carried out at low temperatures led to highest resolution on the aromatic parts of the molecule. A comparison of equally sized images obtained under these varying conditions reveals not only different packing arrangements, but also spots of unlike shape. Therefore, when the approach, preparation, and/or environmental conditions are not the same, STM measurements of different compounds have to be compared with greatest care.     

Improving the selectivity of non-polar alkanes, alkenes, and aromatic hydrocarbon compounds by the application of acetonitrile as a Cl reagent

The selective enhancement of membrane introduction mass spectrometry for non-polar alkanes, alkenes, and aromatic hydrocarbon compounds by the application of acetonitrile as a chemical ionization reagent was investigated. Acetonitrile Cl is able to produce specific fragment ions for many of the compounds test and this can be used to identify and quantify the parent neutrals. This method provided relatively high detection limits of the test compounds. This method could potentially be useful for analytical applications such as the detection of non-polar hydrocarbons for environmental studies if CH₃CN Cl/MIMS is coupled with a preconcentration method.     

Some Applications of Computerized GC-MS to the Determination of Biogenic and Anthropogenic Organic Matter in the Environmentt

Abstract

This is an overview of the application of organic mass spectrometry and ancillary techniques to the analysis of organic matter in environmental research. Such organic matter is usually analyzed in terms of gas, bitumen (lipids), and “kerogen”, with asphaltenes and humic substances for some samples. This approach is illustrated with some examples and the origin, the environmental history and the nature of secondary products of this organic matter can be evaluated by using the data derived from both specific molecular and bulk chemical (also physical) analyses. Evaluations of production and fluxes and cross-correlations can thus be made by the application of the same separation and analytical procedures to samples from different environmental compartments (eg., biota, atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, etc.).     

Umweltprobenbanken-eine wichtige Säule der Umweltbeobachtung

Natural events as well as human activities are affecting the environment and even with largescale monitoring programs it is not possible to completely assess the state of the environment. But a documentation of the environmental status with respect to its chemical composition can be realized with systematically collected representative environmental samples, which can be stored for decades at very low temperatures almost without degradation. Such ‘banking activity’ allows a current environmental monitoring and also a retrospective analysis for the determination of components which have not been analyzed at the time of sampling because of ta lack in analytical techniques or because they have not been known or considered environmentally relevant. The concept of environmental specimen banking and general procedures are described. Various examples illustrate the many facets of such activities.