Antidepressants in serum determined by isolation with two on-line sorbent cartridges and liquid chromatography

A selective method for measuring tricyclic antidepressants in serum is reported. A single assay can be done within ca. 30 min and eight samples can be assayed in less than 150 min. A 1-ml serum sample was diluted and the drugs were extracted from it by passage through a graphitized carbon black (Carbopack B) cartridge. After one washing, this cartridge was connected on line to another one containing a silica-based strong acid exchanger. The tricyclics were removed from the Carbopack surface and selectively readsorbed onto the cation-exchange surface by passing 4 ml of methylene chloride-methanol (60:40, v/v) through the two cartridges. After another wash, the drugs were desorbed from the cation-exchange surface with 0.8 ml of acetonitrile-methanol-water (72:18:10, v/v) saturated with potassium chloride. An aliquot of this solution was chromatographed on a cyano column, and the absorbance of the effluent was measured at 215 nm. The mean analytical recoveries of tricyclic antidepressants added to serum within the range 10-200 micrograms/l exceeded 90%, except for 8-hydroxyamoxapine (mean recovery 85.3%) and amoxapine (mean recovery 83.8%) at the lowest serum concentration considered.     

Evaluation and characterization of a commercial immunosorbent cartridge for the solid-phase extraction of phenylureas from aqueous matrices

The behavior and main characteristics of a commercial immunosorbent (IS) cartridge for the solid-phase extraction of phenylureas are determined in this work. The measured capacity for the analyte-antigen (isoproturon) in a new cartridge is 215 ng and, after more than 100 adsorption-desorption cycles, the remaining capacity still is approximately 70 ng, demonstrating the good stability of the bonded antibody and the interesting possibility of extensive cartridge reuse. Only isoproturon and diuron are specifically retained in this sorbent. The weak nonspecific retention of other pesticides, including other phenylureas, can be avoided by increasing the sample volume during the loading step. Thus, a very selective and sensitive method for the determination of isoproturon and diuron in natural and potable waters is developed by loading a 50-mL sample adjusted to pH 7.4 in the IS cartridge, eluting with methanol-water (60:40, v/v), and analyzing the eluate by high-performance liquid chromatography with UV detection. The clean chromatograms, low detection limits (approximately 0.1 micro g/L), and good precision (< 5%) obtained with this rapid and simple method demonstrate that immunoaffinity extraction can be an excellent alternative for sample preparation in the environmental monitoring of particular pesticides in water matrices.     

Assay for urinary estriol during the menstrual cycle based on extraction by a graphitized carbon black cartridge followed by high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary A high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) assay for estriol in nonpregnancy urine is described. After Enzymic hydrolysis, the estriol is extracted from urine by the sorbent trap technique utilizing graphitized carbon black (Carbopack B). After some washing steps, estriol is desorbed by a suitable solvent system. After solvent removal, the sample is injected into an HPLC column for estriol quantification. Analytical recovery of estriol was 96.1%. The precision of the method was 2.6 and 4.9% respectively at 145 and 10.6ng/ml of urine. The limit of sensitivity was set at 0.8 ng/ml of urine. The mean contents of estriol in the follicular and luteal phases were respectively 11.3 and 38.8 ng/ml of urine.Dedicated to Prof. Dr. A. Liberti on the occasion of his 70th birthday.     

Measurement of urinary estriol glucuronides during the menstrual cycle by high-performance liquid chromatography

A simple high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for measuring estriol-3-glucuronide (E3-3-G) and estriol-16-glucuronide (E3-16-G) in the urine of non-pregnant women is described. Estriol conjugates were extracted from 4 ml of urine with a small cartridge of graphitized carbon black (Carbopack B). After washing, E3-3-G and E3-16-G were desorbed separately by a two-step elution system. After solvent removal, the two glucuronides were quantified by isocratic ion-suppression HPLC with fluorimetric detection. The analytical recovery of the two estriol metabolites was about 95%. The detection limit of the method was 0.6 ng/ml for both analytes in urine, which is well below the concentrations of clinical interest, and the method is not susceptible to substantial interferences. Data relative to urinary levels of E3-3-G and E3-16-G measured by this method on a daily basis in early morning samples from nine women during their menstrual cycles were compared with those reported in the literature and obtained by radioimmunoassay techniques. Moreover, the potential use of defined changes in the concentrations of the two conjugates for predicting the fertile period of women was assessed.     

Rapid extraction and sample clean-up for the fluorescence densitometric determination of aflatoxin M1 in milk and mil powder

The diluted sample is passed through a SepPak C18 cartridge and the toxin is eluted with acetonitrile/water (3:7, v/v). The extract is cleaned up on a SepPak silica cartridge. The antidiagonal spot application technique is used for two-dimensional thin-layer chromatography. Spots are quantified by fluorescence densitometry. Recoveries of aflatoxin M1 added in the range 0.03-0.1 ng g^?1 of milk are 86–97%. The detection limit is about 0.005 ng g^?1 for milk and 0.05 ng g^?1 for milk powder.     

Off-Line and On-Line Preconcentration Techniques for the Determination of Phenylureas in Freshwaters

Abstract

Phenylurea herbicides are analysed by reversed-phase liquid chromatography using UV detection at 244 nm after a concentration step in order to determine ppb or sub-ppb levels in drinking and river waters. With an average UV detection limit of 5 ng, a 500 ml sample volume is necessary to reach the 10 ppt level for spiked LC grade water samples and enables easy determination of concentrations below the ppb level for river water samples. Off-line and on-line methods are compared for the concentration step. Off-line concentration consists in a liquid sorption on n-octadecyl silica (C18) and elution by a suitable organic solvent. Polar phenylureas have low retention volumes on C18 silica and consequently the length of the concentration column has to be 10 cm to concentrate them at the ppb level from 100 ml of water and longer for lower levels of detection. Nevertheless, we show that increasing the size of the concentration column does not improve the limits of detection because of the numerous interferences also concentrated when percolating high volumes of water. On-line technology can be used only with short precolumns and requires a sorbent with a great retention for phenylureas. The copolymer-based PRP-1 is found to be an excellent sorbent and it is then possible to apply on-line precolumn technology with preconcentration through two precolumns (10 × 21 mm ID) in series, the first one being packed with C18 silica and the other with the PRP-1 polymer. Interfering compounds are then trapped onto the first precolumn acting as a filter and common phenylurea-breakthrough volumes on the PRP-1 precolumn are higher than 500 ml. Knowing the amounts preconcentrated on both precolumns and using UV and electrochemical detection help the identification of phenylureas in river water.     

Solid-phase extraction followed by high-performance liquid chromatography-ionspray interface-mass spectrometry for monitoring of herbicides in environmental water

In this work we developed a sensitive and specific multiresidue method, based on reversed-phase liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, with an ionspray interface (LC-ISI-MS), for determining 52 of most representative compounds of herbicides in water samples. The procedure used involved passing 0.5 l of surface water, 2 l of ground water and 4 l of drinking water samples, respectively, through a 0.5 g graphitized carbon black (GCB) extraction cartridge. Base-neutral and acid herbicides were differential eluted from GCB cartridge and follow analyzed by HPLC-ISI-MS apparatus. A conventional 4.6-mm-ID reversed-phase LC C18 column, operating with a mobile phase flow-rate of 1 ml/min, was used to chromatograph the analytes. A flow of 100 microl/min of the column effluent was diverted to the ISI source. The study demonstrates the sensitivity of the technique, with detection limit under 10 ng/l in drinking water samples. Performance data for the method such as recovery and precision are also reported.     

Analysis of free amino acids in fermented shrimp waste by high-performance liquid chromatography

This work presents an HPLC method for the quantification of free amino acids in lyophilized protein fraction from shrimp waste hydrolysate which is obtained by acid lactic fermentation and analyzed using pre-column derivatization with 9-fluorenylmethyl-chloroformate. The amino acids were separated in a Hypersil ODS 5 microm column (250 mm x 4.6 mm) at 38 degrees C. The mobile phase was a mixture of phase A: 30 mM ammonium phosphate (pH 6.5) in 15:85 (v/v) methanol/water; phase B: 15:85 (v/v) methanol/water; and phase C: 90:10 (v/v) acetonitrile/water, with flow rate 1.2 ml/min. Fluorescence detection was used at an excitation wavelength of 270 nm and an emission wavelength of 316 nm. Method precisions for the different amino acids were between 4.4 and 7.1% (relative standard deviation, RSD); detection limits were between 23 and 72 ng/ml; and the recoveries were between 89.0 and 95.0%. The amino acid present at the highest concentration was tyrosine.     

Monitoring of amoxicilline and ceftazidime in the microdialysate of diabetic foot and serum by capillary electrophoresis with contactless conductivity detection

Determination of the broad-spectrum antibiotics amoxicilline (AMX) and ceftazidime (CTZ) in blood serum and microdialysates of the subcutaneous tissue of the lower limbs is performed using CE with contactless conductivity detection (C⁴D). Baseline separation of AMX is achieved in 0.5 M acetic acid as the background electrolyte and separation of CTZ in 3.2 M acetic acid with addition of 13% v/v methanol. The CE-C⁴D determination is performed in a 25 µm capillary with suppression of the EOF using INST-coating on an effective length of 18 cm and the attained migration time is 4.2 min for AMX and 4.4 min for CTZ. The analysis was performed using 20 µl of serum and 15 µl of microdialysate, treated by the addition of acetonitrile in a ratio of 1/3 v/v and the sample is injected into the capillary using the large volume sample stacking technique. The LOQ attained in the microdialysate is 148 ng/ml for AMX and 339 ng/ml for CTZ, and in serum 143 ng/ml for AMX and 318 ng/ml for CTZ. The CE-C⁴D method is employed for monitoring the passage of AMX and CTZ from the blood circulatory system into the subcutaneous tissue at the sites of diabetic ulceration in patients suffering from diabetic foot syndrome and also for measuring the pharmacokinetics following intravenous application of bolus antibiotic doses.     

Determination of gliclazide in serum by high-performance liquid chromatography using solid-phase extraction.

A simple and sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic method for a routine assay of gliclazide in serum is described. Serum samples spiked with glibenclamide (internal standard) were applied to Bond Elut C18 cartridges. After washing with phosphate buffer (pH 7.5) and water, the cartridge was eluted with 60% methanol. The eluate was evaporated to dryness. The residue was dissolved in methanol and injected onto an octadecyl silica column (5 microns, 150 mm x 4.6 mm I.D.). The mobile phase was 0.04 M potassium dihydrogenphosphate (pH 4.6)-acetonitrile-isopropyl alcohol (5:4:1, v/v). Ultraviolet detection at 227 nm was used. The minimum detectable level of gliclazide was 20 ng/ml.     

Determination of quinolones in water samples by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography with fluorimetric detection

A method is reported for the determination, in water samples, of 10 quinolones which are used as veterinary drugs. Analytes are isolated from samples by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and analysed by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography using fluorimetric detection. A solid-phase extraction procedure based on retention on HBL OASIS cartridges and elution with a mixture of acetonitrile-water in basic medium is suitable for pre-concentration of the analytes. Pre-concentration factors up to 250 can be obtained. The quinolones are separated with an octyl silica-based column and mobile phases consisting of aqueous oxalic acid solutions and acetonitrile mixtures. The attained detection limits of the whole process are in the ng l(-1) level when 250 ml of water sample is processed. Recovery rates, from natural water samples spiked at 2060 ng l(-1) level, range from 70 to 100% and common standard deviation are about 6-12%.     

Trace enrichment of (fluoro)quinolone antibiotics in surface waters by solid-phase extraction and their determination by liquid chromatography-ultraviolet detection

A new and simple analytical methodology for the simultaneous analysis of acidic and zwitterionic (fluoro)quinolones in surface waters at trace concentration level is presented. The method is based on the preconcentration of these analytes by a solid-phase extraction procedure and their subsequent quantification by liquid chromatography using ultraviolet detection. The breakthrough volumes of the selected (fluoro)quinolones in four different sorbents--C18, styrenedivinylbenzene (SDB), C18-cation-exchange and SDB-cation-exchange--have been evaluated and varied between 25 and 150 ml depending on the antibiotic and the sorbent used. An exhaustive study of the influence of sample pH on the preconcentration step has been carried out in order to find a suitable procedure for extraction of acidic and zwitterionic FQs in one single step. Under optimum conditions, it was possible to percolate up to 250 ml of water solution onto both C18 and SDB-cation-exchange cartridges with quantitative recoveries for all the analytes tested. However, matrix components of the surface water samples analysed negatively affected the recoveries of the analytes in the SDB-cation-exchange cartridge and thus, C18 cartridges were finally selected for the analysis of the (fluoro)quinolones in lake and river water. The limits of detection achieved with this procedure varied between 8 and 20 ng l(-1) proving its suitability for the determination of the (fluoro)quinolones in water samples at a realistic environmental concentration level.     

Determination of triazine-herbicides in drinking water by a HPLC column switching technique

Summary A semi-automatic coupled-column HPLC-method for the rapid determination of desethylatrazine, simazine, atrazine and terbuthylazine in drinking water was developed. Tenax TA was used as precolumn packing material. 100 ml of the water sample are percolated through the precolumn, on which the analytes are preconcentrated and prefractionated. After the HPLC-integrated sample processing the triazines are transferred to the series-connected analytical column, where separation and detection takes place. The method leads to detection limits between 15 and 32 ng/l. The recovery rates range from 46 to 96% in drinking water.Dedicated to Professor Dr. Wilhelm Fresenius on the occasion of his 80th birthday     

Gas-chromatographic determination of trace amounts of vinyl chloride in water and air after derivatization to 1,2-dibromochloroethane

Summary A quantitative method for the determination of trace amounts of vinyl chloride in water and air is presented. Analysis of water is performed by stripping it with 250 ml/min helium from a 1-l sample at 20°C for 30 min to transfer the vinyl chloride into the gas phase. The vinyl chloride is concentrated on an ice-cooled adsorption tube, which is filled with 550 mg of silica gel and 300 mg of activated charcoal. Air samples are taken by drawing a known volume directly through the ice-cooled adsorption tube. The tubes are eluted with carbon disulfide and the vinyl chloride is derivatizised with bromine water to form 1,2-dibromochloroethane. The derivative is determined by capillary gas chromatography with an electron capture detector. The method was tested using water samples over a range from 0.4 ng/l to 1.25 g/l. The detection limits are 0.4 ng/l for 1-l water samples or 50 ng/m³ for 7.5 l air.     

Determination of major phenolic compounds in water by reversed-phase liquid chromatography after pre-column derivatization with benzoyl chloride

A simple reversed-phase LC method capable of detecting ng/ml quantities of phenolic compounds in water is described. Pre-column derivatization with benzoyl chloride is used for the separation and determination o-cresol, m-cresol, p-cresol, phenol, resorcinol, catechol and hydroquinone in water. The benzoyl derivatives formed within in 15 min, were extracted with dietyl ether, and then analyzed by liquid chromatography with UV detection at 232 nm. With a mobile phase of acetonitrile-tetrahydrofuran-water (54:6:40, v/v) the seven derivatives were eluted in 15 min. The detection limits were between 0.05 and 0.50 ng/ml for 50 ml of a standard water sample. The method was applied to the analysis of phenols in wine and river water. The recovery of the derivatives from pure water was 81-94% with relative standard deviations of 2.5-5.0%.     

Silicon determination by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry after generation of volatile silicon tetrafluoride

A method for the determination of silicon by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) is described. The procedure is based on a discontinuous generation of volatile silicon tetrafluoride in concentrated sulphuric acid medium after injecting 125 μl of 0.1%, w/v sodium fluoride solution into 100 μl of the sample. The gaseous silicon tetrafluoride is fed directly into the ICP torch by a flow of 250 ml min⁻¹ Ar carrier gas. The calibration curve was linear up to at least 100 μg ml⁻¹ of Si(IV) and the absolute detection limit was 9.8 ng working with a solution volume of 100 μl. The relative standard deviation for six measurements of 10 μg ml⁻¹ of Si(IV) was 2.32%. The method was applied to the determination of silicon in water and iron ores.     

Determination of tetracyclines in bovine and porcine muscle by high-performance liquid chromatography using solid-phase extraction.

A method is presented for the determination of the three tetracyclines oxytetracycline, tetracycline and chlortetracycline in muscle, spiked at 100 ng/g, using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The concentration and extraction steps are carried out using Waters Environmental Sep-Pak cartridges. The principal steps involve homogenizing the sample in EDTA-McIlvaine buffer followed by centrifugation and precipitation of the supernatant using trichloroacetic acid. After further filtration and concentration on a Sep-Pak cartridge, the sample is eluted and analysed by HPLC with UV detection and confirmation by diode-array. The column used is a Nova-Pak C18 (4 microns) cartridge (10 cm x 8 mm I.D.). A phosphate-citrate-acetonitrile buffer, utilizing ion suppression, is the mobile phase. The analytes are detectable at levels down to 10 ng/g. The analyte identity can be confirmed at 20 ng/g by the use of diode-array detection and spectral library comparison.     

Determination of pharmaceutical residues in waters by solid-phase extraction and large-volume on-line derivatization with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

This work presents a modified method to analyze selected pharmaceutical residues (clofibric acid, ibuprofen, carbamazepine, naproxen, ketoprofen and diclofenac) in water samples. Various solid-phase extraction cartridges were investigated. The newly developed Oasis HLB (polystyrene-divinylbenzene-N-vinyl pyrrolidone terpolymer) solid-phase extraction (SPE) cartridge provides the optimal sample extraction results. The analytes were then identified and quantitatively determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) via on-line derivatization in the injection-port using a large-volume (10 microl) sample injection with tetrabutylammonium (TBA) salts. This injection-port derivatization technique provides sensitivity, fast and reproducible results for pharmaceutical residues analysis. Mass spectra of butylated derivatives and tentative fragmentation profiles are proposed. Molecular ions and some characteristic ions were used as the quantitation ions to obtain maximum detection sensitivity and specificity. The quantitation limits of these compounds ranged from 1.0 to 8.0 ng/l in 500 ml tap water samples. Recovery of these residues in spiked various water samples ranged from 50 to 108% while RSD ranged from 1 to 10%. The selected analytes were detected in concentrations of 30 to 420 ng/l in wastewater treatment plant effluent and river water samples.     

Solid-phase extraction with liquid chromatography and ultraviolet detection for the assay of antidepressant drugs in human plasma

A solid-phase extraction (SPE) method for sample clean-up followed by a reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) procedure for the assay of five antidepressant drugs (trazodone, doxepin, desipramine, maprotiline and imipramine) is reported. The drugs were recovered from plasma buffered at a suitable pH using C18 Bond-Elut cartridges and mixtures of methanol-aqueous buffer as washing and elution solvents. The recoveries of the drugs using other sorbent materials (C8, C2, cyclohexyl, cyanopropyl and phenyl Bond Elut and copolymer HLB waters cartridges) were also examined. The selectivity of SPE was examined by using spiked plasma samples and the CH cartridge gave rise to the cleanest extracts. Cyclohexyl cartridges were conditioned successively with 2 ml of methanol and 1 ml of acetic acid-sodium acetate buffer (0.1 M, pH 4.0). Plasma sample was buffered at pH 4.0 and then applied to the sorbent. The washing step was performed subsequently with 1.5 ml of acetate buffer (0.1 M, pH 4.0), 100 microl of acetonitrile and 1 ml of methanol-acetate buffer (30:70, v/v). Finally, the analytes were eluted with 0.5 ml of methanol-acetate buffer (70:30, v/v). The extract was evaporated to dryness, reconstituted in mobile phase, and chromatographed on a reversed-phase C18 column with ultraviolet detection at 215 nm. The recoveries of trazodone, doxepin, desipramine, maprotiline and imipramine from spiked plasma samples using the CH cartridge were 58 2, 84 3, 83 3, 83 3 and 82 2%, respectively. The within-day and between-day repeatabilities were lower than 6% and 9%, respectively. The linearity of calibrations for the five antidepressants was between 0.005 and 2 microg/ml. The limits of detection were 1 ng/ml for trazodone, doxepin and desipramine and 2 ng/ml for maprotiline and imipramine.     

Determination of cetirizine in serum using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet spectrophotometric detection.

A method using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection for the determination of ceterizine in serum is described. The method is sensitive down to 50 ng/ml (250-microliter loop). Sample preparation involves only serum deproteination with perchloric acid and injection of the centrifuged supernatant. Elution is at pH 2.5 with acetonitrile-methanol-0.05 M phosphate buffer (33:9:58, v/v) on a 25 cm x 4.6 mm I.D. Spherisorb S5 ODS2 column. Detection is at 211 nm, its lambda max. For levels above 300 ng/ml the serum sample size is 100 microliter and a 200-microliter sample is necessary for concentrations less than 300 ng/ml. At the 2 micrograms/ml concentration the intra-assay relative standard deviation is better than 2.2%, whilst the inter-assay deviation is 2.6% over eight samples. At 200 ng/ml the intra-assay relative standard deviation is 6% over seven samples. Detector response is linear from 100 ng/ml to 10 micrograms/ml (100-microliter loop).