Determination of vitamin E acid succinate in biodegradable microspheres by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

A simple, rapid, and reproducible reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method is applied to the routine assay of vitamin E acid succinate in biodegradable microspheres. Vitamin E acid-succinate-containing poly-(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) microspheres are prepared by the solvent evaporation method. The starting drug-polymer ratio is 1:10 (w/w) and the total amount of drug and polymer processed is always 440 mg. The content of vitamin E acid succinate in the microspheres is evaluated by HPLC. Chromatography is carried out isocratically at 25 degrees C +/- 0.5 degrees C on an Extrasil ODS-2 column with a mobile phase composed of methanol-water (97:3, v/v) (pH 5.6) at a flow rate of 2 mL/min and UV detection at 284 nm. Parameters such as linearity, limits of quantitation (LOQ) and detection (LOD), precision, accuracy, recovery, specificity, and ruggedness are studied as reported in the International Conference on Harmonization guidelines. The stability of vitamin E acid succinate is also studied with satisfactory results after 48 h at 25 degrees C. The method is selective and linear for drug concentrations in the range 15-210 micro g/mL. The LOQ and LOD are 15 and 3 micro g/mL, respectively. The results for accuracy studies are good. Values for coefficient of variation for intra- and interassay are 2.08% and 2.32%, respectively. The mean percentage of vitamin E acid succinate in the recovery studies is 99.52% +/- 0.81%. The mean loading efficiency for microspheres is 96.53% +/- 1.31%.     

Low-temperature rotational relaxation of CO in self-collisions and in collisions with Ne and He

The low-temperature rotational relaxation of CO in self-collisions and in collisions with the rare-gas atoms Ne and He has been investigated in supersonic expansions with a combination of resonance-enhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI) spectroscopy and time-of-flight techniques. For the REMPI detection of CO, a novel 2 + 1' scheme has been employed through the A(1)Pi state of CO. From the measured data, average cross sections for rotational relaxation have been derived as a function of temperature in the range 5-100 K. For CO-Ne and CO-He, the relaxation cross sections grow, respectively, from values of approximately 20 and 7 A(2) at 100 K to values of approximately 65-70 and approximately 20 A(2) in the 5-20 K temperature range. The cross section for the relaxation of CO-CO grows from a value close to 40 A(2) at 100 K to a maximum of 60 A(2) at 20 K and then decreases again to 40 A(2) at 5 K. These results are qualitatively similar to those obtained previously with the same technique for N(2)-N(2), N(2)-Ne, and N(2)-He collisions, although in the low-temperature range (T < 20 K) the CO relaxation cross sections are significantly larger than those for N(2). Some discrepancies have been found between the present relaxation cross sections for CO-CO and CO-He and the values derived from electron-induced fluorescence experiments.     

The influence of anions and kink structure on the enantioselective electro-oxidation of glucose

The electro-oxidation of glucose in sulfuric acid using well-defined chiral platinum single crystal electrodes has been demonstrated previously to be an enantioselective reaction with the degree of enantioselectivity being dependent on the surface density of kink sites. The chirality of the surface originates from the microstructure of the kink site whereby the sequence of the three fundamental adsorption sites [111], [100] and [110] constituting the kink may be viewed from the electrolyte phase either in a clockwise (R-enantiomer) or anti-clockwise (S-enantiomer) fashion. In the present study, this work is extended to examine the role of both kink structure and specifically adsorbed anions on the mechanism of chiral discrimination. Kinked surfaces based on [111] terraces (Pt[976],Pt[643] and Pt[531]),[100] terraces (Pt[721]) and [110] terraces (Pt[11,7,1] and Pt[841]) have been investigated and both the magnitude and potential dependence of the enantioselective electro-oxidation of glucose characterised. Additionally, the changes engendered by interchanging the character of the two steps whose confluence form the kink whilst maintaining the symmetry of the terrace has also been examined via a comparison of Pt[643] and Pt[431]. Low energy electron diffraction (LEED) was used to confirm that all surfaces when clean and thermally annealed were in their (1 x 1) state. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) confirmed this finding for flame-annealed electrodes after cooling in hydrogen. Three general points emerge from the electro-oxidation studies: (i) The highest degree of enantioselectivity is exhibited by kink sites adjacent to [111] and [110] terraces in sulfuric acid. (ii) The adsorption of specifically adsorbed anions like bisulfate/sulfate influences strongly the chiral discriminatory behaviour of all surfaces. (iii) No electro-oxidation takes place at [110] sites, as evidenced by complete overlap of the [110] step hydrogen underpotential deposition (UPD) charge in glucose and glucose-free solutions. Nonetheless it is deduced that [110] sites must play some part in the initial orienting of the glucose molecule prior to reaction. Ideas based on these findings are developed in order to rationalise in particular the influence of anion adsorption on the initial enantioselective interaction of the glucose molecule with the chiral surface.     

Complexation of Nickel(II) with Guanosine 5'-Monophosphate and Inosine 5'-Monophosphate: A Potentiometric and Calorimetric Study

The constants (K(s)) and enthalpies (DeltaH(s)) for stacking interactions between purine nucleoside monophosphates were determined by calorimetry; the values thus obtained were guanosine as follows: K(s) = 2.1 +/- 0.3 M(-)(1) and DeltaH(s) = -41.8 +/- 0.8 kJ/mol for adenosine 5'-monophosphate (5'AMP); K(s) = 1.5 +/- 0.3 M(-1) and DeltaH(s) = -42.0 +/- 1.5 kJ/mol for guanosine 5'-monophosphate (5'GMP); and K(s) = 1.0 +/- 0.2 M(-1) and DeltaH(s) = -42.3 +/- 1.1 kJ/mol for inosine 5'-monophosphate (5'IMP). The interaction of nickel(II) with purine nucleoside monophosphates was studied using potentiometric and calorimetric methods, with 0.1 M tetramethylammonium bromide as the background electrolyte, at 25 degrees C. The presence in solution of the complexes [Ni(5'GMP)(2)](2)(-) and [Ni(5'IMP)(2)](2)(-) was observed. The thermodynamic parameters obtained were log K(ML) = 3.04 +/- 0.02, log K(ML2) = 2.33 +/- 0.02, DeltaH(ML) = -18.4 +/- 0.9 kJ/mol and DeltaH(ML2) = -9.0 +/- 1.9 kJ/mol for 5'GMP; and log K(ML) = 2.91 +/- 0.01, log K(ML2) = 1.92 +/- 0.01, DeltaH(ML) = -16.2 +/- 0.9 kJ/mol and DeltaH(ML2) = -0.1 +/- 2.3 kJ/mol for 5'IMP. The relationships between complex enthalpies and the degree of macrochelation, as well as the stacking interaction between purine bases in the complexes are discussed in relation to previously reported calorimetric data.     

Separation and characterization of antioxidants from Spirulina platensis microalga combining pressurized liquid extraction, TLC, and HPLC-DAD

A new procedure has been developed to separate and characterize antioxidant compounds from Spirulina platensis microalga based on the combination of pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) and different chromatographic procedures, such as TLC, at preparative scale, and HPLC with a diode array detector (DAD). Different solvents were tested for PLE extraction of antioxidants from S. platensis microalga. An optimized PLE process using ethanol (generally recognized as safe, GRAS) as extraction solvent has been obtained that provides natural extracts with high yields and good antioxidant properties. TLC analysis of this ethanolic extract obtained at 115 degrees C for 15 min was carried out and the silica layer was stained with a DPPH (diphenyl-pycril-hydrazyl) radical solution to determine the antioxidant activity of different chromatographic bands. Next, these colored bands were collected for their subsequent analysis by HPLC-DAD, revealing that the compounds with the most important antioxidant activity present in Spirulina extracts were carotenoids, as well as phenolic compounds and degradation products of chlorophylls.     

Electronic decay constant of carotenoid polyenes from single-molecule measurements

The conductance of carotenoid polyenes chemically bound at each end to gold contacts has been measured for single molecules containing 5, 7, 9, and 11 carbon-carbon double bonds in conjugation. The electronic decay constant, beta, is determined to be 0.22 +/- 0.04 A-1, in close agreement with the value obtained from first principles simulations (0.22 +/- 0.01 A-1). The absolute values of the molecular conductance are within a factor of 3 of those calculated from first principles. The small value of beta demonstrates that conductivity drops off only slowly with chain length, confirming that carotenoid conjugated chains are relatively good molecular "wires".     

Antiferromagnetic Ising model in scale-free networks

The antiferromagnetic Ising model in uncorrelated scale-free networks has been studied by means of Monte Carlo simulations. These networks are characterized by a connectivity (or degree) distribution P(k) ∼k^-γ. The disorder present in these complex networks frustrates the antiferromagnetic spin ordering, giving rise to a spin-glass (SG) phase at low temperature. The paramagnetic-SG transition temperature T_c has been studied as a function of the parameter γ and the minimum degree present in the networks. T_c is found to increase when the exponent γ is reduced, in line with a larger frustration caused by the presence of nodes with higher degree.     

Incorporation of metal‐organic framework amino‐modified MIL‐101 into glycidyl methacrylate monoliths for nano LC separation

Metal‐organic frameworks consisting of amino‐modified MIL‐101(M: Cr, Al, and Fe) crystals have been synthesized and subsequently incorporated to glycidyl methacrylate monoliths to develop novel stationary phases for nano‐liquid chromatography. Two incorporation approaches of these materials in monoliths were explored. The metal‐organic framework materials were firstly attached to the pore surface through reaction of epoxy groups present in the parent glycidyl methacrylate‐based monolith. Alternatively, NH₂‐MIL‐101(M) were admixed in the polymerization mixture. Using short time UV‐initiated polymerization, monolithic beds with homogenously dispersed metal‐organic frameworks were obtained. The chromatographic performance of embedded UV‐initiated composites was demonstrated with separations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs as test solutes. In particular, the incorporation of the NH₂‐MIL‐101(Al) into the organic polymer monoliths led to an increase in the retention of all the analytes compared to the parent monolith. The hybrid monolithic columns also exhibited satisfactory run‐to‐run and column‐to‐column reproducibility.