Quantitative Determination of Fumonisins B1 and B2 by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Fluorescence Detection

Abstract

A high-performance liquid chromatographic method has been developed for the quantitative determination of the recently described mycotoxins, fumonisins B₁ (FB₁) and B₂ (FB₂) utilizing pre-column derivatization with o-phthaldialdehyde, isocratic elution, and fluorescence detection. Prior to analysis, sample extracts were purified on strong anion exchange cartridges. The method has been applied to the analysis of naturally contaminated corn and mixed horse feed samples as well as fungal culture material, for the presence of the mycotoxins. Detection limits are approximately 50 ng g^?1 for FB₁ and 100 ng g^?1 for FB₂. The method proved to be highly reproducible and recoveries of the toxins from the purification steps were found to be 99.5% and 85.9% for FB₁ and FB₂, respectively.     

A multicommuted fluorescence-based sensing system for simultaneous determination of Vitamins B2 and B6

A multicommuted flow-through optosensor based on the direct fluorescence measurements of Vitamins B₂ and B₆ using a non-polar sorbent (C₁₈ silica gel) as solid sensing zone (to accomplish the separation and subsequent preconcentration/detection of the target analytes) have been developed. The proposed flow system was controlled by Java-written home-made software and designed using three-way solenoid valves for independent automated manipulation of sample and carrier solutions. The native fluorescence signal was simultaneously monitored at two pairs of excitation/emission wavelengths (450/519 and 294/395 for B₂ and B₆, respectively). The separation of the analytes was performed in the detection flow cell, using the differences in the sorption/elution process on the solid support between the two vitamins, due to their different polarity. Using an optimised sampling time, the analytical signal showed linearity in the range 0.01-0.4 and 0.15-3 μg ml⁻¹ with detection limits of 0.003 and 0.045 μg ml⁻¹ for B₂ and B₆, respectively, obtaining R.S.D. (%) values better than 2% for both analytes. The proposed methodology was applied to different pharmaceutical preparations, obtaining remarkably good results with recoveries ranging from 96 to 107.5%.     

半夹芯16电子碳硼烷化合物Cp*CoS2C2B10H10与含磷化合物的反应性

半夹芯16电子碳硼烷化合物Cp~*CoS_2C_2B_(10)H_(10)分别与二苯基甲基膦、苯基二甲基膦和三甲基膦反应得到碳硼烷衍生物(Cp~*CoS_2C_2B_(10)H_(10))(PPh_2Me)(1)、(Cp~*CoS_2C_2B_(10)H_(10))(PPhMe_2)(2)和(Cp~*CoS_2C_2B_(10)H_(10))(PMe_3)(3)。分别用红外、核磁、元素分析、质谱和单晶X射线衍射等表征方法对1、2和3进行了结构表征。紫外可见吸收光谱结果显示化合物1、2和3在乙腈溶剂中均有2个吸收峰,第一个吸收峰分别位于321、316和321 nm;第二个吸收峰分别位于425、399和407 nm。荧光光谱结果显示化合物1、2和3在乙腈中的最大发射波长位于406 nm左右。     

A new coordination compound based on 4-amino-3-(tetrazol-5-yl)-furazan (HAFT): preparation,crystal structure,and thermal properties

Abstract

The green nitrogen-rich coordination compound Cd(SCZ)₂(AFT)₂ (1) (AFT =4-amino-3-(5-tetrazolate)-furazan and SCZ?=?semicarbazide) was first synthesized and characterized by EA and Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR). The single crystal was cultivated and determined with X-ray diffraction. It revealed that 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2₁/c. A Cd²⁺ ion is coordinated by four N atoms and two O atoms to form a distorted octahedral structure. Among them, two nitrogen atoms are from the two AFT ions and the other four atoms are from two SCZ molecules. The thermal decomposition behavior of 1 was studied with DSC and TG-DTG methods. The apparent activation energy (E), thermal stability, and safety parameters (T_SADT, T_TIT, and T_b) were calculated for 1. Moreover, entropy of activation (ΔS^≠), enthalpy of activation (ΔH^≠), free energy of activation (ΔG^≠), specific heat capacity (C_p), and impact sensitivity were also discussed in detail.     

Determination of Aflatoxins in Plant-based Milk and Dairy Products by Dispersive Liquid–Liquid Microextraction and High-performance Liquid Chromatography with Fluorescence Detection

The consumption of plant-based milk has increased due to their nutritional attributes. However, these products may contain aflatoxins if contaminated raw materials were used, although little concern is present in international regulation regarding this topic. In this work, dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (DLLME) was used for the determination of the most important aflatoxins (B₁, B₂, G₁, and G₂) in oat, rice, coconut, almond, and birdseed plant-based milk and milk-based products enriched with oats, almonds, and walnuts using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with photochemical derivatization and fluorescence detection. Calibrations in matrix were performed for all of the samples, obtaining satisfactory linearity, with correlation coefficients exceeding 0.994 for all of the aflatoxins. The precision in terms of repeatability and intermediate precision, expressed as the relative standard deviation, was lower than 9.7%, and recoveries ranged between 82 and 104%, fulfilling current legislation for the determination of aflatoxins. In addition, the limits of quantification were 0.5?µg?L^?1 for the aflatoxins, allowing the determination of these compounds below the maximum levels established by European Commission in these commodities. Finally, 23 commercial products were analyzed to characterize the presence of these toxins.     

Ion‐pair cloud‐point extraction: A new method for the determination of water‐soluble vitamins in plasma and urine

A novel, simple, and effective ion‐pair cloud‐point extraction coupled with a gradient high‐performance liquid chromatography method was developed for determination of thiamine (vitamin B₁), niacinamide (vitamin B₃), pyridoxine (vitamin B₆), and riboflavin (vitamin B₂) in plasma and urine samples. The extraction and separation of vitamins were achieved based on an ion‐pair formation approach between these ionizable analytes and 1‐heptanesulfonic acid sodium salt as an ion‐pairing agent. Influential variables on the ion‐pair cloud‐point extraction efficiency, such as the ion‐pairing agent concentration, ionic strength, pH, volume of Triton X‐100, extraction temperature, and incubation time have been fully evaluated and optimized. Water‐soluble vitamins were successfully extracted by 1‐heptanesulfonic acid sodium salt (0.2% w/v) as ion‐pairing agent with Triton X‐100 (4% w/v) as surfactant phase at 50°C for 10 min. The calibration curves showed good linearity (r² > 0.9916) and precision in the concentration ranges of 1‐50 μg/mL for thiamine and niacinamide, 5–100 μg/mL for pyridoxine, and 0.5–20 μg/mL for riboflavin. The recoveries were in the range of 78.0–88.0% with relative standard deviations ranging from 6.2 to 8.2%.     

Fluorimetric determination of aflatoxins by flow-injection analysis

Summary A fast and inexpensive fluorimetric method for the determination of total aflatoxins (B₁, B₂, G₁, and G₂) in food of use in screening numerous samples suspectedly containing these substances is proposed. The sensitivity of the method (determination range between 0.5 and 200.0 ng ml^–1) allows these analytes to be detected at concentrations well below legal limits; hence, separation-detection techniques such as HPLC need only be used with samples in which these compounds are found to occur. The method has been applied to maize, peanut and tapioca samples, obtaining average recoveries of 100.9 with deviations of ±5% with respect to 100% recovery.

---

Fluorometrische Bestimmung von Aflatoxinen durch Fließinjektionsanalyse

     

Spectroscopy studies of sandwich-type complex of silver(I) co-ordinated to nuclear fast red and adenine and its analytical applications

A novel fluorometric method for the determination of adenine was proposed, based on the fluorescence quenching of a nuclear fast red-silver complex as a small molecule optical probe in the presence of adenine. The characteristic spectra of absorption, resonance Rayleigh scattering (RRS) and the fluorescence of the system were analysed. Adenine, Ag⁺ and nuclear fast red formed a sandwich-type complex. The composition of the compound and the mechanisms of fluorescence quenching were discussed. The optimal conditions for the reaction and the effects of co-existing substances were also investigated. The quenched fluorescence intensity was proportional to the concentration of adenine in the range of 0.03–0.90 µg mL^?1, with the limit of detection of 0.023 µg mL^?1. The method was applied satisfactorily to the determination of adenine in synthetic samples, herring sperm DNA, human sera and vitamin B₄ tablets with recoveries from 95.3 % to 105 %.     

Glycol modified titanosiloxane as molecular precursor for homogenous titania–silica material: synthesis and characterization

Ti(OPrⁱ)₄ reacts with HOSi(O^tBu)₃ in anhydrous benzene in 1:1 and 1:2 molar ratios to afford alkoxy titanosiloxane precursors, [Ti(OPrⁱ)₃{OSi(O^tBu)₃}] (A) and [Ti(OPrⁱ)₂{OSi(O^tBu)₃}₂] (B), respectively. Further reactions of (A) or (B) with glycols in 1:1 molar ratio afforded six complexes of the types [Ti(OPrⁱ)(O–G–O){OSi(O^tBu)₃}] (1A–3A) and [Ti(O–G–O){OSi(O^tBu)₃}₂] (1B–3B), respectively [where G = (CH₂)₂ (1A, 1B); (CH₂)₃ (2A, 2B) and {CH₂CH₂CH(CH₃)} (3A, 3B)]. Both (A) and (B) are liquids while all the other products are viscous liquids which get solidified on ageing. Cryoscopic molecular weight measurements of the fresh products indicate their monomeric nature. FAB mass studies of (A) and (B) also indicate monomeric nature. However, FAB mass spectra of the two representative solids (1A) and (2B) suggest dimeric behavior of the glycolato derivatives. (A) distills at 85 °C/5 mm while other products get decomposed even under reduced pressure. TG analyses of (A), (B), (1A), and (1B) suggest formation of titania–silica materials at 200 °C for (A) and (B) and 350 °C for (1A) and (1B). The products have been characterized by elemental analyses, FTIR and ¹H, ¹³C & ²⁹Si-NMR techniques. All these products are soluble in common organic solvents indicating a homogenous distribution of the components on the molecular scale. The Si/Ti ratio of the oxide may be controlled easily by the composition of the starting precursors. Hydrolysis of the glycol modified derivative, (1A) by the Sol–Gel technique affords the desired homogenous titania–silica material, TiO₂·SiO₂ in nano-size while, the precursor (A) yields a non-stiochiometric silica doped titania material. However, pyrolysis of (A) yields nano-sized crystallites of TiO₂·SiO₂. All these materials were characterized by FTIR, powder XRD patterns, SEM images, and EDX analyses.     

Modulation of fluorescence emission of 1-(2-pyridyl) pyrazole derived Schiff base ligands by exploiting their metal ion sensitive binding modes

Dioxomolybdenum(VI) complexes [MoO₂(B¹)H₂O] (1), [MoO₂(B²)EtOH] (2), [MoO₂(B³)EtOH] (3) and [MoO₂(B⁴)EtOH] (4) were synthesized using the Schiff base ligands H₂B¹(previously reported), H₂B², H₂B³ and H₂B⁴, respectively. These ligands were prepared by condensation of 1-(2-pyridyl) 5-methyl 3-pyrazole carbohydrazide with salicylaldehyde, o-hydroxy acetophenone, 5-bromo salicylaldehyde and 5-nitro salicylaldehyde respectively. Due to the presence of a substituted 1-(2-pyridyl) pyrazole unit, ligands H₂B¹, H₂B² and H₂B³ exhibit fluorescent emissions, and the most intense emission was obtained for H₂B³. H₂B⁴ is incapable of showing fluorescence emission. As the ligands are capable of using different binding modes, according to the demands of the guest metal ions, their emission properties also change accordingly. The dioxomolybdenum(VI) complex of the ligand H₂B¹, i.e. complex 1, shows quenched emission compared to H₂B¹. Again when Cu²⁺, Co²⁺ or Ni²⁺ ions are added to a solution of 1, in each case a new complex of Cu²⁺ Co²⁺ or Ni²⁺ is formed in solution and further quenching was observed. However, with Zn²⁺ input to a solution of 1, fluorescence recovery was observed up to the level of the free ligand. The copper(II) complex of H₂B¹ (complex 5), produced by adding equivalent amount of Cu²⁺ salt to a solution of 1, was isolated and characterized. One of the dioxomolybdenum(VI) complexes, 3, when subjected to an oxo-transfer reaction with PPh₃ produces complex [MoO(B³)CH₃CN] (6). Complex 6 shows reduced fluorescence emissions compared to 3 in the solid phase. These observations open up the possibilities for these ligands to work as fluorescent signaling system with different metal ion inputs. All the complexes are characterized by elemental analyses, electronic spectra, IR, ¹H NMR, magnetic measurements, EPR and by cyclic voltammetry. Complexes 1 and 5, as well as the ligands H₂B² and H₂B³, have been crystallographically characterized.     

Simultaneous analysis of three avermectins in soils by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

A simple and sensitive method has been developed and validated for the determination of abamectin B_1a (ABA B_1a), emamectin B_1a (EMA B_1a) benzoate and ivermectin H₂B_1a (IVM H₂B_1a) in soils. The avermectins (AVMs) residues were extracted from soils with acetonitrile/water (9?:?1, v/v) and then were purified on C₁₈ solid-phase extraction (SPE) cartridge. After being derivatised by N-methylimidazole (N-MIM) and trifluoroacetic anhydride (TFAA), the residues of three AVMs were analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-FLD). The method was validated in terms of system suitability, linearity, selectivity, precision, recovery, specificity and stability. There was a good linear relationship (R ^2?>?0.99) for three AVMs ranged from 0.01 to 5?µg?mL^?1. The LOD and LOQs of ABA B_1a, EMA B_1a benzoate and IVM H₂B_1a for standard solutions were 1.1–1.7 and 3.6–5.7?µg?L^?1 respectively. The accuracy of AVMs in soils was from 83.7 to 115.5% with precision less than or equal to 12.4%. Using the developed method, 9 soil samples with 9.3–12806.3?µg?kg^?1 of AVMs residues had been detected.     

Sequential determination of fat- and water-soluble vitamins in Rhodiola imbricata root from trans-Himalaya with rapid resolution liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A rapid method was developed to determine both types of vitamins in Rhodiola imbricata root for the accurate quantification of free vitamin forms. Rapid resolution liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (RRLC–MS/MS) with electrospray ionization (ESI) source operating in multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) mode was optimized for the sequential analysis of nine water-soluble vitamins (B₁, B₂, two B₃ vitamins, B₅, B₆, B₇, B₉, and B₁₂) and six fat-soluble vitamins (A, E, D₂, D₃, K₁, and K₂). Both types of vitamins were separated by ion-suppression reversed-phase liquid chromatography with gradient elution within 30 min and detected in positive ion mode. Deviations in the intra- and inter-day precision were always below 0.6% and 0.3% for recoveries and retention time. Intra- and inter-day relative standard deviation (RSD) values of retention time for water- and fat-soluble vitamin were ranged between 0.02–0.20% and 0.01–0.15%, respectively. The mean recoveries were ranged between 88.95 and 107.07%. Sensitivity and specificity of this method allowed the limits of detection (LOD) and limits of quantitation (LOQ) of the analytes at ppb levels. The linear range was achieved for fat- and water-soluble vitamins at 100–1000 ppb and 10–100 ppb. Vitamin B-complex and vitamin E were detected as the principle vitamins in the root of this adaptogen which would be of great interest to develop novel foods from the Indian trans-Himalaya.     

Supramolecular dyad derived from a buckybowl series of O2N2-donor naphthodiaza-crowns coordinated to C60: photophysical,NMR and theoretical studies

Supramolecular complexation of C₆₀ with L¹-L⁵ were studied in toluene, chloroform and 1,2-dichlorobenzene solvents using UV–vis, fluorescence, ¹H, ¹³C NMR spectroscopy as well as density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The Job’s plot of continuous variation method established 1:1 stoichiometry for L¹-L⁵/C₆₀. Binding constants (K) calculated for L¹-L⁵/C₆₀ were also determined employing UV–vis and fluorescence spectroscopy. Both steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopic surveys showed remarkable fluorescence quenching phenomenon for L¹-L⁵ in the presence of C₆₀ which was primarily attributed to involvement of a static process. The observed fluorescence quenching in L¹–L⁵ was described in terms of both π–π and n–π interactions of the naphthalene moieties and the nitrogen donor groups on the aza-crown macrocyclic ligands with C₆₀, respectively. Moreover, DFT calculations using B₃LYP/6-31G* basis set confirmed on the aforesaid π–π interaction of naphthalene groups on the aza-crowns with C₆₀. The DFT calculations also established significant distributions of charge between C₆₀ and L¹-L⁵ in according to the electronic structure and geometry of L¹-L⁵/C₆₀, very similar to phthalocycnine/C₆₀ systems.     

AFB1–AP Conjugate for Enzyme Immunoassay of Aflatoxin B1 in Corn Samples

Abstract

This article describes the conjugation between aflatoxin B₁ (AFB₁), one of the major mycotoxins, and alkaline phosphatase (AP), one of the most used enzymes for immunoassays. In addition, an application of the ELISA method for aflatoxin B₁ determination in corn is presented. Three AFB₁–AP conjugates in different toxin–enzyme ratios were prepared and tested. The ELISA results, developed with the most effective conjugate obtained, showed a satisfactory working range between 2.4 and 4000 ng of toxin/g of corn. The detection limit was 2 ng/g in corn samples, and recoveries ranged from 105 to 120%.     

Determination of Halide Traces in Environmental Samples by Mass Spectrometric Isotope Dilution Analysis

Abstract

Since 1985, the Goulden large-sample extractor (GLSE) has been used to isolate a broad array of trace-organic contaminants from large volumes of water. In this study, field-applied quality control measures, including matrix and surrogate spikes and blanks, were used to monitor method performance from GLSE extraction through GC-MS analysis. The method was applied to the determination of multiple classes of pesticides isolated from 4- to 112-L filtered surface-water samples. Average recoveries of six surrogate compounds ranged from 84 ± 18% for [²H₁₀]diazinon to 15 ± 13% for 4,4′-[²H₈]DDT, the low recoveries for which were largely a result of unmonitored breakdown of this surrogate by the GC injection system. Field-matrix-spike samples were prepared by fortifying 10-L, 35-L, and 110-L filtered surface-water samples with 68 pesticides to amended concentrations of 11-to 50-ng/L each. Recoveries ranged from not detected to greater than 100%. Variability in pesticide recoveries from triplicate 10-L water samples collected at one site averaged 5.7% relative standard deviation and did not exceed 19%.     

Excitation to symmetry forbidden vibronic levels in the 1B2u state by controlled electron impact on benzene

The ¹B_2u-¹A_1g fluorescence emission of benzene excited by controlled electron impact was measured in the 14 – 100 eV region. The optically forbidden 6° levels were preferentially, excited. This indicates that a non-dipole transition takes place under low-energy electron-molecule collisions.     

Fast Determination of Fumonisin B1 and B2 in Corn Using a Modified QuEChERS Method and LC–MS–MS

A fast analytical method for the simultaneous determination of fumonisin B₁ (FB₁) and fumonisin B₂ (FB₂) in corn using a novel QuEChERS method and LC–MS–MS was developed and validated. Samples were extracted with methanol–water (3:1 v/v) by means of ultrasonic extraction. The extract was purified with a novel modified QuEChERS method. Firstly, FB₁ and FB₂ in the extract were retained with primary secondary amine (PSA). Then, FB₁ and FB₂ were released from PSA with 1.0 % formic acid in methanol. The final eluate was diluted with water, and analyzed by LC–MS–MS on a Waters Acquity BEH C₁₈ column with 0.1 % formic acid in water/methanol as mobile phase with gradient elution. Mean recoveries of 83.5–102.4 % with CVs of 3.6–10.5 % were obtained at fortification levels of 2, 50 and 1,000 μg kg⁻¹. The limit of quantification was 2.0 μg kg⁻¹.

     

Simultaneous determination of Hg(II) and Cu(II) in water samples using fluorescence quenching sensor of N-doped and N,K co-doped graphene quantum dots

The present study was aimed to use of N doped graphene quantum dots (N-GQDs) and N,K co-doped graphene quantum dots (N,K-GQDs) as a fluorescence quenching sensor to determine both mercury and copper in water sample, simultaneously using simple fluorescence protocol. Each of N-GQDs or N,K-GQDs was optimized separately with 1–5% (w/v) HNO₃ or KNO₃, respectively, and their quantum yields were determined and compared. It was found that N-GQDs, obtained from 3% (w/v) HNO₃ doped resulted higher fluorescence intensity at the maximum excitation and emission wavelengths of 370 and 460 nm, respectively, with higher quantum yield (QY = 83.42%) compared with that of undoped GQDs (QY = 16.35%). While N,K-GQDs obtained from 5%(w/v) KNO₃ gave somewhat different fluorescence spectrum, but still had the same maximum excitation and emission wavelengths with rather highest QY (94.07%). However, it is interesting that detection sensitivity expressed as slope of their calibration curve (y = 5.43x − 19.48; r² = 0.9971) of the N-GQDs is rather higher than that (y = 1.29x + 17.66; r² = 0.9977) of the N,K-GQDs for Hg²⁺ fluorescence quenching sensor, and the fluorescence intensity of N-GQDs had better selectively quenching effect only by both Hg²⁺ and Cu²⁺. Thus, their quenching effects were selected to develop the fluorescence turn-off sensor for trace level of both metal ions in real water samples. For method validation, the N-GQDs exhibited high sensitivity to detect both Hg²⁺ and Cu²⁺ with wide linear ranges of 20–100 μM and 100–500 μM, respectively. Limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantitation (LOQ) were 0.42 μM & 1.41 μM for Hg²⁺ and 13.19 μM & 43.97 μM for Cu²⁺, respectively, with their precision expressed as an intra-day and an inter-day analysis of 6.98% & 11.35% for Hg²⁺ and 11.78% & 9.43% for Cu²⁺, respectively. Also the study of matrix analysis of the water samples (drinking water and tap water), was carried out using N-GQDs and N,K-GQDs resulted good percentage recoveries in comparison with those using undoped GQDs under the same optimum conditions.     

Determination of Water Soluble Vitamins in Laboratory Animal Feeds by Micellar Electrokinetic Chromatography

Seven water-soluble vitamins: thiamine hydrochloride (B₁), riboflavin hydrochloride (B₂), pyridoxine hydrochloride (B₆), calcium pantotenate (B₅), ascorbic acid (C), folic acid (B₉), and biotin (H, B₇) were separated using the micellar electrokinetic chromatographic (MEKC) method in a single run with the electrolyte solution consisting of 100 mM H₃BO₃, 5 mM Na₂B₄O₇, and 30 mM sodium dodecylsulphate (SDS). The separation was achieved within 8 min. and the detection was performed at 200 nm. The calibration graphs plotted with six concentrations of each vitamin were linear with the determination coefficient r > 0.999. The method was applied for quantification of vitamins B₁, B₂, B₅, B₆, B₉, C, and H in novel feed for laboratory animals. The sample preparation involved solid-phase extraction of the vitamins, used prior to the MEKC analysis. The attained precision level was good with the recoveries between 98.4% and 105.6%. The simplicity of the procedure should make it highly useful for feed quality control in husbandry and the animal feed industry.     

Laser-induced fluorescence of benzyl radicals in the gas phase

The excitation spectrum of the laser-induced fluorescence of benzyl has been observed in the gas phase. Fluorescence lifetimes of 880 ± 10 ns at zero pressure were obtained for the s, t and 6a¹₀ bands of the (1 ²A₂—1 ²B₂, 2 ²B₂—1 ²B₂) transitions of benzyl-h₇. The fluorescence lifetime of the t band in the corresponding transition of benzyl-d₇ was 1340 ns.