Study of RP HPLC Retention Behaviours in Analysis of Carotenoids

For determination of selected carotenoids, various types of columns for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with different properties have been used. The characteristics of the laboratory-used packing material containing monomeric alkyl-bonded phases (C₁₈, C₃₀) and phenyl as well as phenyl-hexyl stationary phases were studied. The retention data of the examined compounds were used to determine the hydrophobicity and silanol activity of stationary phases applied in the study. The presence of the polar and carboxyl groups in the structure of the bonded ligand strongly influences the polarity of the stationary phase. Columns were compared according to methylene selectivity using a series of benzene homologues. The measurements were done using a methanol–water mobile phase. Knowledge of the properties of the applied stationary phase provided the possibility to predict the RP HPLC retention behaviours in analysis of carotenoids including lutein, lycopene and β-carotene. The composition of the mobile phase, the addition of triethylamine and the type of stationary phase had been taken into account in designing the method of carotenoid identification. Also a monolithic column characterised by low hydrodynamic resistance, high porosity and high permeability was applied. The presented results show that the coverage density of the bonded ligands on silica gel packings and length of the linkage strongly influence the carotenoid retention behaviours. In our study, the highest retention parameters for lutein, lycopene and β-carotene were observed for C₃₀ and C₁₈ stationary phase. This effect corresponds with pore size of column packing greater than 100 Å and carbon content higher than 11 %.     

Development and validation of an HPLC method for the simultaneous determination of tocopherols, tocotrienols and carotenoids in cereals after solid-phase extraction

The increasing interest in antioxidant properties of cereal and cereal-based products has prompted the development of a simple and reliable HPLC method for the simultaneous determination of important phytochemicals like tocopherols (T), tocotrienols (T3) and carotenoids. Separation was carried out on a Nucleosil 100 C(18) column, 5 μm (250 mm × 4.6 mm) thermostated at 25 °C, using a linear gradient elution system starting with methanol and ending with a mixture of methanol-isopropanol-acetonitrile. All separated compounds including the internal standard (α-tocopherol acetate) were eluted within 16 min and detected by dual detection: fluorescence for tocopherols and tocotrienols at 290 nm excitation and 320 nm emission and UV-vis photodiode array detection for lutein and β-carotene at 450 nm. Detection limits ranged from 0.2 μg/g (β-carotene) to 1.60 μg/g (α-tocopherol). The intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation were calculated by using cereals with different levels of lipophilic antioxidants. The extraction method involved sample saponification and clean-up by solid-phase extraction (SPE). The extraction recoveries obtained using OASIS HLB SPE cartridges and dichloromethane as eluent were in the range of 90.2-110.1%, with RSD lower than 10%. The method was successfully applied to cereals: durum wheat, bread wheat, rice, barley, oat, rye, corn and triticale.     

Critical assessment of three high performance liquid chromatography analytical methods for food carotenoid quantification

Three sets of extraction/saponification/HPLC conditions for food carotenoid quantification were technically and economically compared. Samples were analysed for carotenoids α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, lutein, lycopene, and zeaxanthin. All methods demonstrated good performance in the analysis of a composite food standard reference material for the analytes they are applicable to. Methods using two serial connected C₁₈ columns and a mobile phase based on acetonitrile, achieved a better carotenoid separation than the method using a mobile phase based on methanol and one C₁₈-column. Carotenoids from leafy green vegetable matrices appeared to be better extracted with a mixture of methanol and tetrahydrofuran than with tetrahydrofuran alone. Costs of carotenoid determination in foods were lower for the method with mobile phase based on methanol. However for some food matrices and in the case of E–Z isomer separations, this was not technically satisfactory. Food extraction with methanol and tetrahydrofuran with direct evaporation of these solvents, and saponification (when needed) using pyrogallol as antioxidant, combined with a HPLC system using a slight gradient mobile phase based on acetonitrile and a stationary phase composed by two serial connected C₁₈ columns was the most technically and economically favourable method.     

A comparison of the performance of two chromatographic and three extraction techniques for the analysis of PAHS in sources of drinking water

The aim of this work is to establish a sensitive and reliable method for the analysis of the 16 priority Environmental Protection Agency-defined polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) found in water samples. Gas chromatography (GC)-mass spectrometry (MS) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-fluorescence detection (FLD)-UV techniques are optimized to obtain an adequate resolution of all compounds. Validation of the methods is carried out, and a good performance is observed for both techniques. The HPLC-FLD-UV technique is somewhat more sensitive than the GC-MS technique for the determination of PAHs; thus, the HPLC-FLD-UV method is used to follow up both the solid-phase extraction (SPE) analysis using cartridges and discs and the liquid-liquid extraction (LLE), which are also evaluated for the extraction of the PAHs. Low recoveries between 43% and 79% are obtained using SPE cartridges, and higher values are obtained using SPE discs (56-96%) and LLE (60-105%). Better results are obtained using the LLE technique, and, thus, analysis of real water samples is carried out using this technique. LODs between 0.6 and 21 ng/L and relative standard deviations less than 15% are obtained using a spiked water sample analyzed using the full LLE HPLC-FLD-UV method.     

Extraction of mono- and dicarboxylic acids from a curative water

A method for the analysis of mono- and dicarboxylic acids from water is presented. For this purpose two techniques, a C₁₈ solid phase extraction (SPE) and a combination method of liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) and aminopropyl SPE, were tested. With the combination method all analytes, short-chain mono- and long-chain dicarboxylic acids, could be analysed in one approach. The C₁₈ SPE was not suitable for short-chain mono- but for dicarboxylic acids. Concentrations in the investigated water ranged from 315 mg/l (butanoic acid) to 2.9 mg/l (octanoic acid). Dicarboxylic acids were found from 5 mg/l (octanedioic acid) to 0.5 mg/l (dodecanedioic acid).     

An improved HPLC Method for the Separation of Fourteen Carotenoids,Including 15-/13- and 9-CIS-β-Carotene Isomers,Phytoene and Phytofluene

Abstract

The isocratic separation of 14 carotenoids, as well as retinol, retinyl acetate, retinyl palmitate, α-tocopherol and tocopherol acetate, is accomplished in 12 minutes, using a Spheri-5-ODS column and acetonitrile:dichloromethane:methanol (70:20:10) as mobile phase, with two-channel, programmable multiwavelength detection. The carotenoids separated are as follows: lutein/zeaxanthin, canthaxanthin, β-apo-8′ carotenal, β-cryptoxanthin, echinenone, lycopene, γ-carotene, α-carotene, β-carotene, 9-cis-β-carotene, 15-cis-/13-cis-β-carotene, phytoene and phytofluene. The separation of lutein and zeaxanthin is obtained simply by changing the mobile phase to acetonitrile:methanol (85:15).     

Dual injector solvent elution and focussing technique for the on-line analysis of solid-phase extraction cartridges in HPLC

Summary A new dual injector solvent focussing and elution technique developed for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) greatly improves chromatographic efficiency for the on-line analysis of C₁₈ solid-phase extraction (SPE) cartridges. Solutions containing three benzene homologs were used to characterize the dual injector analysis technique and to compare the chromatographic efficiency of this method with conventional SPE analysis methods. Sampling was performed off-line using a glass precolumn cartridge (3 mm i.d. × 30 mm) packed with 15–35 μm C₁₈ silica. On-line cartridge analysis was achieved with two injection valves in either serial or parallel configuration. The injection loop of the first valve contains the eluting solvent, and the cartridge holder is connected in place of the injection loop of the second valve. When an injection is made, both valves are turned to the inject position, and the solvent plug is forced through the cartridge, focussing the analyte at the solvent front as it elutes the cartridge. Solvent focussing at the head of the column, resulting from preconditioning of the column with a small plug of water during injection, further minimizes the variance of the injection plug and improves the chromatographic efficiency. The technique has potential applications to environmental and biological fluid analysis where analyte preconcentration and resolution from the sample matrix components may be difficult with current SPE methods.     

Optimization by orthogonal array design of solid phase extraction of organochlorine pesticides from water

Summary A two-level orthogonal array design (OAD) to optimize the solid phase extraction of organochlorine pesticides is described. Parameters including eluting solvents, SPE cartridges packed with C₁₈-bonded silica from different manufacturers, duration of air drying, pH, salinity and humic acid have been examined using OAD. This systematic approach was then used to optimize the relevant parameters required for off-line solid phase extraction of organochlorine pesticides from water. The optimized parameters were employed to perform extraction of the pesticides from natural waters.     

Optimization by orthogonal array design of solid phase extraction of organochlorine pesticides from water

Summary A two-level orthogonal array design (OAD) to optimize the solid phase extraction of organochlorine pesticides is described. Parameters including eluting solvents, SPE cartridges packed with C₁₈-bonded silica from different manufacturers, duration of air drying, pH, salinity and humic acid have been examined using OAD. This systematic approach was then used to optimize the relevant parameters required for off-line solid phase extraction of organochlorine pesticides from water. The optimized parameters were employed to perform extraction of the pesticides from natural waters.     

Re-usability of solid-phase extraction columns during the HPLC analysis of some macrolide antibiotics in serum and urine

Summary The re-usability of C₁₈ solid-phase extraction (SPE) cartidges was assessed utilizing two different analytical procedures developed for the analysis of erythromycin and josamycin in human serum and urine. A statistical procedure using confidence intervals was employed in order to determine a 10% change in drug recovery on re-use with a 95% degree of certainty. The results obtained indicated that the SPE cartridges could be successfully re-used up to three times for serum and urine samples containing physiological concentrations of erythromycin base and propionate. However, in the case of josamycin, results were inconsistent after the second re-use of the extraction cartridges for serum samples. Reproducible results, however, were still obtained for urine samples using the same SPE cartridges up to four times. The results indicate that although succesful re-use of SPE cartridges is possible, each drug and associated extraction conditions need to be carefully assessed prior to implementing such re-use.     

Simultaneous sample preparation for high-performance liquid chromatographic determination of Vitamin A and β-carotene in emulsified nutritional supplements after solid-phase extraction

Determination of small amounts of the fat-soluble species Vitamin A (VA) (2.5 μg/g) and β-carotene (9 μg/g) from emulsified nutritional supplements containing 50 kinds of co-existing compounds and a fat content between 2000 and 8000 times higher was performed by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection set at ex. 350 nm and em. 480 nm, and visible detection at 450 nm using an Inertsil ODS 80A (5 μm) analytical column. Mobile phases of methanol-ethanol (50:50) and acetonitrile-ethanol (70:30) were used for the both vitamins. A Bond Elut C₁₈ cartridge was chosen for SPE after comparison with eight other types of SPE cartridge. Retention time of VA and β-carotene was 7 and 8 min, respectively, giving a limit of detection of ca. 0.1 ng per injection at a signal-to-noise ratio 3:1. Recoveries of VA and β-carotene were over 90% by the standard addition method. Relative standard deviation of VA and β-carotene were ca. 2.9 (n=5) and 2.3% (n=5), respectively.     

Comprehensive high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the measurements of lipophilic antioxidants in human plasma

Owing to the increasing interest in the health effects of antioxidant micronutrients on chronic diseases, a robust and rapid HPLC method for simultaneous measurement of coenzyme Q₁₀ (ubiquinone and ubiquinol), vitamin A (all-trans-retinol), vitamin E (tocopherols and tocotrienols) and carotenoids (lutein, zeaxanthin, β-cryptoxanthin, lycopene and β-carotene) was developed. Sample preparation and analytical conditions that would affect solubility and stability of these antioxidants were investigated and optimized. The mobile phase used was made up of acetonitrile, methanol, ethanol and tert-butanol without corrosive additives such as ammonium perchlorate and perchloric acid. Our results show that using two C₁₈ columns coupled with photodiode array, fluorescence and electrochemical detection, a comprehensive spectrum of 16 lipid-soluble antioxidants in 30 μL of plasma could be separated and quantified within 30 min. The chromatographic run time was about 3-fold faster and the sample size was about 5-fold smaller than when assays were performed separately using existing methods. The present method will be useful for dietary habit studies and for antioxidant status investigations.     

N-Methylimidazolium ionic liquid-functionalized silica as a sorbent for selective solid-phase extraction of 12 sulfonylurea herbicides in environmental water and soil samples

A novel material for solid-phase extraction (SPE) was synthesized by chemical immobilization of a functionalized N-methylimidazolium ionic liquid on silica gel. Cartridges packed with the synthetic material were successfully applied to the pre-concentration of trace-level thifensulfuron-methyl, metsulfuron-methyl, chlorsulfuron, sulfometuron-methyl, rimsulfuron, ethametsulfuron, tribenuron-methyl, bensulfuron-methyl, prosulfuron, pyrazosulfuron, chlorimuron-ethyl and primisulfuron from environmental water and soil samples. The 12 sulfonylurea herbicides (SUs) obtained a good resolution in less than 50 min using HPLC with a UV detector. The recovery studies using the ionic liquid-functionalized silica as a sorbent were performed by three consecutive extractions of water and soil samples at two spiked levels. The average recovery for each analyte was in the range of 53.8–118.2% for the water samples and 60.9–121.3% for the soil sample, with RSDs lower than 11.3% in all cases. The ionic liquid-functionalized silica cartridges showed higher selectivity for the SUs than commercially available C₁₈ cartridges did.     

Solid phase extraction of amines

The objective of this paper is to provide information about solid phase extraction (SPE) as an alternative to liquid-liquid extraction of amines from several matrices. Different sorbents ranging from non-polar phases, such as C₁₈ silica to more polar such as cyanopropylsilica (CN) have been tested for analysis of aliphatic amines as monoamines, diamines and polyamines. Phenylalkylamines such as amphetamine or methamphetamine and heterocyclic amines such as histamine or cephalosporins (which also contain a carboxylic group), have also been studied. The different steps involved in the extraction procedure have been tested (conditioning, retention, pre-concentration, washing and elution) in order to obtain extracts free of interferences and enough sensitivity. C₁₈ silica (100 mg) was selected as optimal phase with recoveries nearly of 100%. The elution of more polar amines was performed in acidic conditions while less polar amines required organic solvents. Cephalosporin retention was performed in acid condition by using disk cartridges EM C_18, which gave better selectivity. The optimised clean-up procedures have been discussed to the quantification of the corresponding amines in real samples (urine, water and beer). The accuracy and precision were outlined.     

Application of SPE for the HPLC analysis of taxanes fromTaxus cell cultures

Summary Solid phase extraction (SPE) methods are studied for the sample pretreatment for HPLC analysis ofTaxus cell suspension cultures. Various types of SPE materials were tested for the extraction of both the taxane standards and samples of various origin. Comparison between the different cartridges and the different elution solvents are made in terms of extraction recovery and sample clean-up. Selective elution of the taxanes is achieved by a gradient elution scheme.     

An automatic optosensing device for the simultaneous determination of resveratrol and piceid in wines

For the first time, a spectrofluorimetric method is reported for the simultaneous determination of resveratrol (RVT) and piceid (PCD), two stilbenes showing diverse interesting physiological and biochemical attributes, as well as a wide range of health benefits ranging from cardioprotection to chemoprevention. The method makes use of a multicommutated flow-through optosensor in which the resolution of RVT and PCD is accomplished by means the sequential arrival of their photoproducts, on-line generated by UV-irradiation, to the detection area. This is possible due to the different kinetic behaviour of these latter on a solid support (C₁₈ silica gel) filling a minicolumn placed before the detector. The measurement in solid-phase of the photochemically induced fluorescence of the photoproducts (λ_ex: 257 nm/λ_em: 382 nm) is used as analytical signal for monitoring both compounds. The method has been applied to the analysis of RVT and PCD in wines and requires a previous solid-phase extraction (SPE) using Bakerbond C₁₈ cartridges. This pretreatment and the use of a solid-support in both the minicolumn and the flow-cell of the detector allow the determination of RVT and PCD by external calibration. Detection limits (DLs) are 9.3 and 12.6 ng mL⁻¹ for RVT and PCD, respectively. Commercial red and white wine samples have been analysed and the results obtained have been satisfactorily validated by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).     

Determination of organotin compounds (OTC) at low levels in seawater by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and gas chromatography-pulsed flame photometric detection (GC-PFPD)

In this work, a simple, sensitive and affordable analytical method for the simultaneous determination of nine organotin compounds (butyltins, phenyltins and methyltins) in seawater using solid-phase extraction (SPE) and gas chromatography-pulsed flame photometric detection was developed and validated. The performance of three different SPE cartridges (Envi C₁₈, Oasis HLB and Oasis MCX) and three elution solvents of different polarity (hexane, methanol and acetonitrile) was evaluated. The extraction parameters, such as solvent volume, presence of complexing and ion-pairing reagents, sample volume and pH and breakthrough volume, were also investigated. Tributyltin, as the organotin compound of special interest, was efficiently extracted using any of the cartridges and solvents tested. However, the simultaneous extraction of all nine organotin compounds was the most efficient using reversed-phase Envi C₁₈ cartridge and 0.1% (w/v) tropolone in methanol as eluent. The optimised method resulted in good recovery, precision and linearity for all compounds, particularly for tri- and disubstituted species. Method detection limits ranged from 0.22 to 1.27 ng(Sn) L^?1 for butyltins, 0.37 to 4.91 ng(Sn) L^?1 for phenyltins and 0.45 to 1.16 ng(Sn) L^?1 for methyltins. The accuracy of butyltins determination was further verified by the comparison with purchased derivatised standards. The developed method was successfully applied to the environmental samples.     

Purification of 4-hydroxybenzoic Acid and 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde from Laminaria japonica Aresch Using Commercial and Monolithic Sorbent in SPE Cartridge

Phenolic compounds are one of the major compounds in Laminaria japonica Aresch. Solid-phase extraction was used to separate the two phenolic compounds (4-hydroxybenzoic acid and 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde). A new monolithic sorbent was developed and used successfully as a special sorbent in a solid-phase extraction process. The effects on different SPE cartridges using silica, C₁₈, and monolithic were compared. Quantitative analysis was carried out using a C₁₈ analysis column (5 µm, 150 × 4.6 mm). Good linearity was obtained for the two targets, ranging from 0.5 to 100 µg mL^?1 (r ²  > 0.999), with relative standard deviations <4.7%.     

Electric Field-Assisted Solid Phase Extraction: Devices, Development and Application with a Cationic Model Compound

This work describes novel devices for electric field-assisted solid phase extraction (E-SPE) and an application was carried out on the antimicrobial marbofloxacin (MAR). Conventional syringe-type SPE cartridges were easily adapted to receive two electrodes that were inserted and positioned below and above the sorbent. The adapted cartridges were coupled to a flow extraction system, which consisted of an electrophoresis power supply, a peristaltic pump and a homemade SPE manifold. These devices were used to apply electric fields during the extraction of MAR from fortified buffer and milk samples. The recovery of MAR was improved (2.3 times) or reduced (4.2 times) in comparison to conventional SPE when the top electrode was used as cathode (E-SPE_(?/+)) or anode (E-SPE_(+/?)), respectively. The results demonstrated that usual SPE cartridges can be easily and inexpensively adapted for applying an electric field in SPE. It was also concluded that the electric field applied in a usual SPE cartridge can be employed as a new suitable approach to enhance the extraction efficiency of ionic compounds in a complex sample matrix.     

Evaluation of extraction methods for the simultaneous analysis of simple and macrocyclic trichothecenes

The article is concerned with the simultaneous determination of simple and macrocyclic trichothecenes using high-performance liquid chromatography (LC) coupled to UV and mass spectrometric (MS) detection. Emphasis is put on the liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) and solid phase extraction (SPE) procedure from plant material such as wheat, comparing SPE cartridges packed with different stationary phases based on silica and polymer sorbents. In this coherence a polymeric material on the basis of poly(glycidyl methacrylate-divinylbenzene) (GMA-DVB) is developed with special regard on synthesis procedures to enhance the extraction recovery of trichothecenes in a broad polarity range. Evaluation of extraction techniques showed that the introduced material is competitive with commercially available high quality SPE materials. Percentage recovery is 82% for polar compounds, 89% for medium polar compounds and 98% for lipophilic compounds.