Comparison of N-alkyl acridine orange dyes as fluorescence probes for the determination of cardiolipin

The phospholipid (PL), cardiolipin (CL), is found almost exclusively in the inner membrane of mitochondria and loss of CL is considered as an important indication of cell apoptosis. Previously, 10-N-nonyl acridine orange (NAO) has been used as a fluorescent probe for the visualization of CL in mitochondrial cell membranes and in solution. In this work for the determination of CL, we have synthesized two new fluorescent probes, n-tetradecyl acridine orange (C14-AO), and n-octadecyl acridine orange (C18-AO) by reacting acridine orange with the corresponding n-alkyl bromide. Using excitation and emission wavelengths at about 500 and 525 nm and varying the percentage of methanol in water as the solvent, no interaction between CL and the fluorescent probes at 75% is noted but a proportional quenching of the fluorescence signal by CL is observed at 50% or less for C14-AO and 60% or less for C18-AO. Binding efficiency of these fluorescent probes to CL is compared using dye concentrations of 5, 10, and 20 μM. C18-AO shows a better sensitivity than C14-AO and NAO, respectively, but is less selective. For C14-AO, the detection limit and limit of quantitation are 0.07 and 0.21 μM, respectively, which are better than those previously reported for NAO. One anionic PL, phosphatidic acid, shows some quenching interference to both the C14 and C18 dyes but only at concentrations above the working range for sample analysis. The CL in mitochondrial membrane samples is determined by standard addition using C14-AO. The level of CL in the outer mitochondrial membrane compared to the inner membrane is significantly increased due to the addition of cadmium chloride into the cells causing cell apoptosis.     

Simple LC Method with Chemiluminescence Detection for Simultaneous Determination of Arbutin and l-Ascorbic Acid in Whitening Cosmetics

Simultaneous determination of arbutin (ART) and l-ascorbic acid (AA) by HPLC with chemiluminescence detection is proposed for the first time. This method is based on the CL reaction of acidic potassium permanganate with ART and AA in the presence of formaldehyde as enhancer. The separation was performed on a C₁₈ column with a 90:10 (v/v) mixture of 0.02 M phosphate buffer and methanol as mobile phase. The effects of several conditions on HPLC resolution and CL emission were studied systematically. The linear ranges were 0.5–50 and 1–200 μg mL⁻¹ for ART and AA, respectively. The detection limits were 0.2 and 0.3 μg mL⁻¹, respectively. The method was successfully applied to the determination of ART and AA in whitening cosmetics.     

Capillary electrophoresis with LIF detection for assessment of mitochondrial number based on the cardiolipin content

Cardiolipin is a mitochondria‐specific phospholipid known to be intimately involved with numerous mitochondrial functions. Accordingly, quantitative determination of cardiolipin provides a valuable aspect for assessing mitochondrial content and function. The current study was undertaken to develop a simple and reliable method for direct analysis of cardiolipin with particular application for the assessment of mitochondrial number of HepG2 cells. The method presented is based on the online 10‐N‐nonyl acridine orange (NAO) interaction with cardiolipin using CE with LIF detection. An aqueous‐organic solvent system composed of 10% H₂O–40% methanol–50% ACN (all v/v) containing 20 μM NAO provides both short analysis time within 2 min and a definite fluorescence enhancement at 525 nm for NAO–cardiolipin complex as compared with NAO alone. Under the optimum condition, a calibration curve between the peak area and the concentration of cardiolipin was established in the range of 0.1–200 μM with a correlation coefficient of 0.9955. The detection limit is 9 nM. The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of cardiolipin in mitochondria from HepG2 cells. A new biochemical method estimating the mitochondrial number per cell was developed and used together with the proposed method for cardiolipin per cell measurement and cardiolipin per mitochondrion reported before.     

Interaction of the Hepatitis A peptide VP3(110–121) with lipid mono and bilayer models of cellular membranes

 The surface activity of HAV-VP3(110–121) peptide was studied at different concentrations in an aqueous solution. Saturation was reached at 0.62 μM concentration. The ability of the peptide to insert into monolayers of CL, SA, DPPC, DPPC/5% CL and DPPC/5% SA was also performed. Mixed mono-layers composed of this peptide and the lipid mixtures were also studied as far as the miscibility of the two components is concerned. The mixed monolayers showing small negative deviations from ideality. The values of excess free energy of mixing (ΔG ^E _M) suggest that the energy associated to the miscibility process is almost non-significant except for a 0.2 molar fraction of DPPC/SA and 0.6 molar fraction of DPPC/CL. The peptide has an expanding effect upon the monolayers but due to its amphoteric character this interaction is not dependent on the electrical charge of the lipids. In fluorescence studies, the peptide showed some degree of interaction with the lipid polar heads, but no interactions were detected with its alkylchains. This results show that after incubation with DPPC/5% CL and DPPC/5% SA liposomes the peptide remains in the outer part of the bilayers. Received: 20 January 1997 Accepted: 28 May 1997     

Cytotoxic phenolic glycosides from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Boschniakia himalaica</Emphasis>

A new lignan glycoside, 9-acetyl lanicepside B (1), was isolated from the whole plant of Boschniakia himalaica, along with five known compounds, lanicepside A (2), plantainoside D (3), plantamajoside (4), (–)-woonenoside XI (5), and syringin (6). The new compound's structure was established on the basis of detailed 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic analysis and chemical evidence. 9-Acetyl lanicepside B (1) showed weak in vitro cytotoxic activities against A549 and P388 with IC₅₀ values of 64.7 μM and 72.5 μM, respectively. Syringin (6) showed moderate in vitro cytotoxic activities against A549 and HL-60 with IC₅₀ values of 32.5 μM and 41.8 μM, respectively.     

Investigation of potential-sensitive fluorescent dyes for application in nitrate sensitive polymer membranes

The applicability of various potential-sensitive dyes (PSD) for optical sensing of anions is reported. Specifically, nitrate-responsive polymer membranes have been developed which are composed of a plasticized polymer, an anion exchange catalyst, and a fluorescent dye. On exposure to nitrate, the fluorescence intensity of such membranes increases, while the wavelengths of the excitation and emission maxima remain virtually unchanged. The membranes typically are 2–4 μm thick and exhibit highest sensitivity to nitrate in the 2 to 200 mgl^–1 range. Signal changes on exposure to 100 mmol/l nitrate can be as high as +300%. The detection limit is 0.2 mgl^–1. The cationic PSD octadecyl acridine organe was tested in combination with a tin-organic and an indium-organic anion carrier rather than with tridodecylmethylammonium chloride, but both carriers were found to display no improved selectivity. Received: 2 December 1995 / Revised: 28 March 1996 / Accepted: 5 April 1996     

Fully automated high-performance liquid chromatographic separation of DL-amino acids derivatized witho-phthaldialdehyde together withN-isobutyryl-cysteine. Application to food samples

Summary A method is presented that enables the fully automated precolumn derivatization of mixtures of DL-amino acids (DL-AA) witho-phthaldialdehyde together withN-isobutyryl-L(orD)-cysteine. HPLC on a 250 mm×4 mm i.d. column packed with Shandon Hypersil ODS, 5 μm, and a linear gradient formed from 23 mM sodium acetate (pH 6.0) and methanol/acetonitrile (600 ml+50 ml) separates completely an AA standard composed of 17 pairs of DL-AA (including Asn and Gln), Gly and the internal standard L-homo-Arg, within 75 min at a flow rate at 1 ml/min. Applications are shown of the determination of free D-AA isolated from an orange juice concentrate and from soy sauce, and the detection of D-AA in a gelatine total hydrolysate. In the case of these foodstuffs fluorescence detection (excitation at 230 nm, emission at 445 nm) allows the routine detection of 5–10 pmol per AA; and approx. 0.2–1% D-AA, in an excess of L-AA, are quantifiable. Presented in part at the “International Symposium on Separation of Peptides, Proteins and Polynucleotides”, October 29–31, 1990, Wiesbaden (abstract 620), ANAKON '91, April 22–24, Baden-Baden (abstract C 5), and at the “15th International Symposium on Column Liquid Chromatography”, June 3–7, 1991, Basel (abstract P26/2).     

Determination of synthetic antioxidants in dairy products and dietetic supplements by micellar liquid chromatography with direct sample injection

Summary A simple and rapid HPLC method for the determination of synthetic antioxidants (propyl gallate, tert-butylhydroquinone, 2,4,5-trihydroxybutyrophenone, nordihydroguaiaretic acid, octyl gallate, 3-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyanisole and dodecyl gallate) in powdered and liquid milk, cream of milk and dietetic supplements is described. The samples are diluted or solved in a micellar solution, filtered and directly injected. The retention behavior of the antioxidants on a C18 column, with micellar mobile phases containing SDS (0.05–0.15 M), n-propanol (1–9%, v/v) and 10 mM phosphate at pH 3, has been studied by using mathematical models. Retention is predicted with errors below 3%. To optimize the mobile phase composition, a procedure which takes into account the position and shape of the peaks is applied. The optimized mobile phase, which contains 0.090 M SDS and 6.6% n-propanol, allows the separation of six antioxidants in less than 13 min. Calibration curves are linear (r>0.9998) and the limits of detection range from 0.05 to 0.3 ng antioxidant, which correspond to concentrations well below the levels allowed in foods. Repeatabilities for standards containing 5 μg mL⁻¹ ranged from 0.2 to 1.6%.     

Application of computer imaging,stripping voltammetry and mass spectrometry to study the effect of lead (Pb-EDTA) on the growth and viability of early somatic embryos of Norway spruce (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Picea abies</Emphasis> /L./ Karst.)

Image analysis (IA) was used to determine the areas and circumferences of clusters of early somatic embryos (ESEs) of the Norway spruce (Picea abies /L./Karst.). Results obtained from IA were compared with the fresh weights of the ESE clusters and their esterase activities. The areas of the ESE clusters correlated well with both the increases in fresh weight (R ²=0.99) of the ESEs and their esterase activities (R ²=0.99). In addition, we studied the viability of the ESEs, which was determined by (a) double staining with fluorescein diacetate and propidium iodide (the resulting fluorescence was quantified by IA) and (b) determining esterase activity using a spectrofluorimetric detector. The results obtained with IA and esterase assay were comparable (the deviation between the tangents of the bisectors was 6.4%). IA was also used to study the effect of Pb–EDTA chelate (50, 250 and 500 μM) on the viability of the ESEs and on the growth of clusters. The presence of Pb–EDTA markedly slowed the growth of ESEs clusters (by more than 65% with 250 μM of Pb–EDTA after 288 h of cultivation) and decreased the viability of ESEs (by more than 30% with 500 μM of Pb–EDTA after 288 h of cultivation). The lead concentration in the ESEs was determined by differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry and increased with the external lead concentration and the time of treatment from 100 to 600 pg Pb/100 mg of fresh weight of ESEs. Glutathione is a diagnostic marker of the influence of Pb–EDTA on ESEs and its content was determined by high–performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The glutathione content changed linearly with treatment time and the applied external lead concentration. The highest glutathione content was obtained at 250 μM of Pb–EDTA after 192 h of cultivation.     

Analysis of doxorubicin uptake in single human leukemia K562 cells using capillary electrophoresis coupled with laser-induced fluorescence detection

The doxorubicin (DOX) uptake in single human leukemia K562 cells with changes in both drug dosage and exposure period was studied using capillary electrophoresis (CE) coupled with laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) detection. The cells were treated with DOX at different concentrations (1, 3, 10, 20, 30, and 50 μM) and for different exposure times (1, 3, 5, 24, and 48 h). At least 20 cells were analyzed for each DOX-treated cell population. A marked heterogeneity in DOX uptake among single cells was observed, because the relative standard deviation of the uptake of DOX by single cells ranged from 24.0% to 61.1% within each cell population. The cell-to-cell heterogeneity in DOX uptake first decreased and then became constant with increasing drug concentration, but it did not exhibit regular variation with increasing exposure time. The mean DOX uptake was a linear function of drug concentration (r ≥ 0.9667). In terms of the correlation with exposure time, the mean DOX uptake reached its maximum at 3 h for the cell populations treated with 1–10 μM DOX, while it kept increasing during 48 h exposure of cell populations to 20–50 μM DOX. Because it eliminates DOX fluorescence quenching and sample loss, the CE-LIF method directly detects the true DOX uptake by single cells, and thus presents accurate information on both the cell-to-cell heterogeneity in DOX uptake and the patterns of DOX uptake in K562 cells as functions of drug concentration and exposure time.     

A simple and fast liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method for measurement of underivatized <Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">l</Emphasis>-arginine,symmetric dimethylarginine,and asymmetric dimethylarginine and establishment of the reference ranges

Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) is an endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase and an established biomarker for endothelial function, while symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA), an emerging biomarker for renal function, has been shown to outperform creatinine-based equations for estimated glomerular filtration rate. In order to study these analytes for clinical research, a fast and simple method for measuring arginine (ARG), SDMA, and ADMA in plasma by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has been developed. Plasma (50 μL) was mixed with 50 μL of internal standard of ¹³C-arginine and d₇-ADMA followed by protein precipitation with methanol containing 1% ammonium acetate (300 μL). After centrifugation, the supernatant (100 μL) was mixed with 300 μL of acetonitrile with 1% formic acid, and the mixture was injected onto a silica column monitored by a mass spectrometer. The analytical cycle time was 5.0 min. The method was linear from 5.7 to 489.7 μM for ARG, 0.06 to 5.15 μM for SDMA, and from 0.34 to 5.65 μM for ADMA, with an accuracy of 99.0–120.0%. Total coefficients of variation for all analytes ranged from 2.7% to 7.7% for three concentration levels. The effects of hemolysis, lipemia, uremia, icterus, specimen tube types, storage at different temperature, and freeze/thaw were thoroughly investigated. Reference ranges were established using 51 well-defined reference subjects (12 men and 39 women, age 19–64 years): 53.1–129.7 μM for ARG, 0.32–0.65 μM for SDMA, and 0.36–0.67 μM for ADMA. In conclusion, the validated LC-MS/MS method described here offers a fast and reliable ARG, SDMA, and ADMA quantitation in plasma with minimum sample preparation.     

Immunosensors for pollutants working in organic media. Study of performances of different tracers with luminescent detection

A comparative study of enzymatic and non-enzymatic labels combined with luminescence detection, developed for immunosensing of pesticide residues (carbaryl, 1-naphthol, irgarol 1051) in organic media, is presented. Peroxidase and alkaline phosphatase enzymes with fluorogenic (3-p-hydroxyphenylpropanoic acid) and luminogenic (AMPPD derivative) substrates, respectively, were assessed as enzymatic markers. As an alternative, terbium(III) chelate, with time-resolved fluorescence detection, was evaluated as a non-enzymatic label. The best sensitivity was achieved by use of alkaline phosphatase in an immunocomplex capture assay format (I ₅₀ values 0.06, 0.27, and 7.45 μg L⁻¹ in buffer, 1:1 methanol–buffer, and methanol, respectively). Results were also good (I ₅₀ 1.00 and 6.30 μg L⁻¹ for water and aqueous–organic mixture, respectively) for Tb(III) chelate in an immobilized conjugate assay format. Use of alkaline phosphatase label to measure carbaryl (100 ng L⁻¹) in different spiked river water samples, after solid-phase extraction and analyte elution with an ethyl acetate–methanol mixture, resulted in recoveries ranging from 81 to 98%, with acceptable precision (CV 4–14%, n=4).     

Antioxidant activityofaromatic alkaloids from the marine sponges <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aaptos aaptos</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Hyrtios</Emphasis> SP.

Aaptamine (1) and isoaaptamine (2) were isolated from the marine sponge Aaptos aaptos; 6-bromo-2′-de-N-methylaplysinopsin (3) from the marine sponge Hyrtios sp. Alkaloids 1–3 were tested for the ability to trap 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical, to reduce Folin–Ciocalteau reagent (FCR), and to inhibit oxidation of linoleic acid (LA) induced by peroxide radicals. Compounds 1 (IC₅₀ 18 μM), 2 (IC₅₀ 16 μM), and 3 (IC₅₀ 18 μM) reacted strongly with DPPH, comparable with trolox (IC₅₀ 16 μM) and showed high reducing ability for FCR. The inhibition of LA oxidation by 1–3 was comparable with that of ionol (BHT). It was shown that the antioxidant activity of 1–3 was related to their ability to release both electrons and H atoms.     

Thermal stability of recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFPuv) at various pH values

The thermal stability of the recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFPuv) expressed by Escherichia coli cells and isolated by three-phase partitioning extraction with hydrophobic interaction chromatography was studied. The GFPuv (3.5–9.0 μg of GFPuv/mL) was exposed to various pH conditions (4.91–9.03) and temperatures (75–95°C) in the 10 mM buffers: acetate (pH 5.0–7.0), phosphate (pH 5.5–8.0), and Tris-HCl (pH 7.0–9.0). The extent of protein denaturation (loss of fluorescence intensity) was expressed in decimal reduction time (D-value), the time exposure required to reduce 90% of the initial fluorescence intensity of GFPuv. For pH 7.0 to 8.0, the thermostability of GFPuv was slightly greater in phosphate buffer than in Tris-HCl. At 85°C, the D-values (pH 7.1–7.5) ranged from 7.24 (Tris-HCl) to 13.88 min (phosphate) The stability of GFPuv in Tris-HCl (pH>8.0) was constant at 90 and 95°C, and the D-values were 7.93 (pH 8.38–8.92) and 6.0 min (pH 8.05–8.97), respectively. The thermostability of GFPuv provides the basis for its potential utility as a fluorescent biologic indicator to assay the efficacy of moist-heat treatments at temperatures lower than 100°C.     

Antioxidant flavonoids from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Tamus communis</Emphasis> ssp. <Emphasis Type="Italic">cretica</Emphasis>

A new flavonoid, kaempferol-3,4′-di-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (1), and three known flavonoids (2–4) were isolated from the aerial parts of T. communis L. The structure of the new compound was elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic data. Compounds 1 and 2 showed significant antioxidant activity (IC₅₀ 187.151 ± 0.821 μM, and 92.079±0.513 μM, respectively), whereas compounds 3 and 4 showed moderate activity in DPPH free radical scavenging assays. Published in Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 3, pp. 295–297, May–June, 2009.     

CE Determination of 2-(9-Carbazole)ethyl Chloroformate-Labeled Oligopeptides

A pre-column derivatization method for sensitive determination of oligopeptides, using the tagging reagent 2-(9-carbazole)ethyl chloroformate (CEOC-Cl) followed by capillary electrophoresis (CE) with diode-array detection, has been developed. Maximum yield close to 100% were observed when a three to fourfold molar excess of reagent was used at pH 9.0–10.0. Excess reagent was extracted with n-hexane–ethyl acetate 9:1–10:1 (v/v); this enabled direct analysis using CE with no significant disturbance from the major fluorescent reagent degradation by-products. The effects on the results of buffer pH and of SDS and organic modifier concentrations were examined. Good baseline resolution in the separation of five CEOC-peptides was achieved with a 48.5-cm total length (effective length 40 cm) 50-μm inner diameter capillary column.     

Isocratic Reversed-Phase HPLC for Simultaneous Separation and Determination of Seven Antiepileptic Drugs and Two of their Active Metabolites in Human Plasma

A simple reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of the antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) zonisamide (ZNS), primidone (PRI), lamotrigine (LTG), phenobarbital (PB), phenytoin (PHT), oxcarbazepine (OXC), and carbamazepine (CBZ) and two of their active metabolites, monohydroxycarbamazepine (MHD) and carbamazepine 10,11-epoxide (CBZE) in human plasma. Plasma (100 μL) was pretreated by deproteinization with 300 μL methanol containing 20 μg mL⁻¹ propranolol hydrochloride as internal standard. HPLC was performed on a C₈ column (4.6 mm × 250 mm; particle size 5 μm) with methanol–acetonitrile–0.1% trifluoroacetic acid, 235:120:645 (v/v), as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.5 mL min⁻¹. ZNS, OXC, and CBZ were monitored by UV detection at 235 nm, and PRI, LTG, MHD, PB, PHT, and CBZE by UV detection at 215 nm. Relationships between response and concentration were linear over the concentration ranges 1–80 μg mL⁻¹ for ZNS, 5–50 μg mL⁻¹ for PRI, 1–25 μg mL⁻¹ for LTG, 1–50 μg mL⁻¹ for MHD, 5–100 μg mL⁻¹ for PB, 1–10 μg mL⁻¹ for CBZE, 0.5–25 μg mL⁻¹ for OXC, 1–50 μg mL⁻¹ for PHT, and 1–25 μg mL⁻¹ for CBZ. Intra-day and inter-day reproducibility were adequate (coefficients of variation were ≤11.6%) and absolute recovery ranged from 95.2 ± 6.13 to 107.7 ± 7.76% for all the analytes; for the IS recovery was 98.69 ± 1.12%. The method was proved to be accurate, reproducible, convenient, and suitable for therapeutic monitoring of the nine analytes.     

Reagent peak-free liquid chromatography–fluorescence analysis of carboxylic acids using a fluorous scavenging–derivatization method

We developed a fluorous scavenging–derivatization method for reagent peak-free liquid chromatography (LC)–fluorescence analysis of carboxylic acids. In this method, carboxylic acids were fluorescently derivatized with 1-pyrenemethylamine in the presence of 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide and 1-hydroxy-1H-benzotriazole. Residual excess unreacted reagent was tagged with 2-(perfluorooctyl)ethyl isocyanate and could be selectively removed by microfluorous solid-phase extraction before LC analysis. With use of this method, eight fluorescent derivatives of linear aliphatic carboxylic acids (C₁–C₈) can be separated within 30 min by reversed-phase LC with gradient elution. In the chromatogram obtained, the fluorous-tagged unreacted reagent peak is greatly decreased after microfluorous solid-phase extraction and does not interfere with the quantification of each acid. With use of microfluorous solid-phase extraction with 80% (v/v) aqueous methanol elution, over 99.9% of the unreacted fluorescent reagent was removed. The detection limits (signal-to-noise ratio of 3) for the carboxylic acids examined are 2.3–8.0 fmol per 10-μL injection. We also applied this method successfully to the analysis of highly polar carboxylic acids such as α-keto acids and tricarboxylic acid cycle metabolites.     

Determination of roxythromycin in blood serum by liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric detection

A procedure has been developed for the determination of a macrolide antibiotic roxythromycin (RX) in blood serum using HPLC with mass spectrometric detection using clarithromycin (CL) as the internal standard. RX and CL have been extracted from the samples by solid-phase extraction in a cartridge filled with a polar adsorbent, cyanopropylsilyl silica gel. The absolute recoveries of RX and CL are 89.6 and 92.5%, respectively. Chromatographic separation has been performed on a Nucleodur C₁₈ Isis column with the mobile phase composed as follows: water-methanol-acetonitrile-formic aid (499: 250: 250: 1 by volume). Registration has been performed in the mode of selected ion monitoring with m/z 837.7 (RX) and m/z 748.7 (CL). The analytical range for RX is 0.097–14.81 μg/mL, the quantification limit is 0.097 μg/mL, the detection limit is 0.03 μg/mL, and the intraday and interday relative standard deviation are 2–6 and 4–8% respectively. The procedure has been applied to the pharmacokinetic studies of the Rulid pharmaceutical preparation.     

Extraction–thermal lens quantification of cobalt with Nitroso-R-Salt in two-phase aqueous systems with water-soluble polymer polyethylene glycol

A novel method is proposed for the extraction-thermal lens quantification of cobalt with Nitroso-R-Salt based on the distribution of the colored complex in a two-phase aqueous system on the basis of poly-ethylene glycol (PEG) and an ammonium sulfate solution followed by its thermal lens detection in the extract. The limit of detection is 0.3 μM (20 ng/mL); the lower limit of the analytical range is 0.7 μM (40 ng/mL); the relative standard deviation for the concentrations 1–50 μM makes 1–3% (n = 6, P = 0.95). In the determination of cobalt by spectrophotometry under the same conditions, the detection limit is 10 μM (0.6 μg/mL) and the lower limit of the analytical range is 40 μM (2.5 μg/mL). The precision of thermal lens measurements in PEG solutions is higher in comparison to that in aqueous ones because of the weaker interference of convection in aqueous solutions of PEG.