Use of EDXRF elemental fingerprinting for discrimination of botanical and geographical origin of Slovenian bee pollen

Bee pollen contains proteins, amino acids, carbohydrates, fats, fatty acids, vitamins, polyphenols, and mineral nutrients that make it useful as a good nutritional supplement in the human diet. It has the richest elemental composition among bee products which is not uniform and consequently varies greatly depending on botanical and geographical origin. In polyfloral and selected monofloral bee pollen samples: sweet chestnut, maple, dandelion, rapeseed, flowering ash, buckwheat, common ivy, and plantain, the concentrations of P, S, Cl, K, Ca, Mn, Fe, Zn, Br, Rb, and Sr were determined. A non-destructive energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry was used for elemental fingerprinting. The most abundant elements in Slovenian bee pollen are K, P, S, Ca, and Cl followed by Fe, Mn, Zn, Rb, Br, and Sr. Several statistically significant differences in the content of analysed elements were found between studied groups according to the botanical and geographical origin which can be related to soil and plant elemental composition and plant metabolism. The obtained data extend our previous chemical profiling of Slovenian bee pollen and contribute to a more precise evaluation of some essential mineral nutrients in bee pollen to cover recommended dietary allowances in human nutrition. Additionally, this work contributes to a better understanding of mineral nutrient requirements in honey bee nutrition and of the environmental and agricultural impact of this product.     

Determination of essential elements (Mn,Fe, Cu and Zn) in herbal teas by TXRF,FAAS and ICP-OES

The aim of this study was the comparison of the results obtained in the determination of the content of essential elements such as Mn, Fe, Cu and Zn in vegetation samples using different analytical approaches, including suspension preparation and total reflection X-ray fluorescence ( TXRF) analysis as well as most commonly used spectroscopic methods in the field of vegetal analysis such as acid digestion in combination with atomic emission (AES) and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). In the case of TXRF analysis, two instruments equipped with different X-ray tubes anodes (W and Mo) were used to better evaluate the potential of TXRF for vegetal samples analysis. Analytical figures of merit for the considered methods were determined by the analysis of plant reference materials. The one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) applied to the analysed and certified values showed that the results were not statistically different at the significance level of p-values <0.05. Therefore, suspension preparation and TXRF analysis proved to be a sustainable and fast analytical alternative to the most commonly used ones involving a previous digestion of the sample and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) or flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) analysis. Finally, the different analytical approaches were applied to the determination of Mn, Fe, Cu and Zn in a set of herbal teas used for medical purposes.     

Temperature effect on optical properties of the cuticle of Lucilia sericata

Optical properties of the spinal cuticle taken from the species of Lucilia sericata are studied by the reflectance measurements and their structural properties by scanning electron microscopy. The multilayer structure of the cuticle has been confirmed from the scanning electron micrographs. The temperature sensitivity of the multilayer structure is documented by the modification of optical properties in a heating process. The heating process and the local heating using the focused laser beam causes the local changes of the optical properties what is finally demonstrated by the structural color shift of the reflected spectra.     

Synthesis,characterization and biological activities of <Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-heteroaromatic hydrazones and their complexes with Pd(II), Pt(II) and Cd(II)

Condensation derivatives of ethyl hydrazinoacetate with 2-formylpyridine and quinoline-2-carboxaldehyde were synthesized. Pd(II), Pt(II) and Cd(II) complexes with the 2-formylpyridine derivative and a Cd(II) complex with the quinoline-2-carboxaldehyde derivative were synthesized and characterized by spectroscopic techniques. In the complexes, both ligands are coordinated in neutral NN bidentate modes, while the remaining two coordination sites are occupied by chloride. All compounds showed biological activity when tested against Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus.     

Spectrophotometric behaviour of quinolinium oxime-palladium(II) complexes

Summary It has been established that 1-(2-phenyl-2-hydroxyiminoethyl)-1-quinolinium chloride, 1-(2-phenyl-2-hydroxyiminoethyl)-1-isoqui-nolinium chloride, 1-(2-phenyl-2-hydroxyiminoethyl)-1-(4-methyl)-quinolinium chloride and 1-(2-phenyl-2-hydroxyiminoethyl)-1-(6-methyl)quinolinium chloride react with palladium(II) chloride in the pH range 3.3–7.1 and form yellow water-soluble 11 complexes with maximum absorbance at 413 nm. The conditional stability constants of the complexes at the optimum pH of 6.5 are all about 10^4.7, and the molar absorptivities are in the range 2.2–2.6×10³ l·l mole^–1·cm^–1 at pH 6.5 and 413 nm. Beer's law is obeyed up to 3–4×10^–4 M oxime concentration, depending on the oxime determined.     

Synthesis, Structure, and Antimicrobial Activity of Complexes of Pt(II), Pd(II), and Ni(II) with the Condensation Product of 2-(Diphenylphosphino)benzaldehyde and Semioxamazide

Summary. Complexes of Pt(II), Pd(II), and Ni(II) with the condensation derivative of 2-(diphenylphosphino)benzaldehyde and semioxamazide were synthesized, characterized, and their antimicrobial activity was evaluated. The ligand and the complexes were characterized by spectroscopic methods with the particular accent on NMR spectral analysis. For the palladium(II) complex, the crystal structure was determined by X-ray analysis. In all the complexes the ligand is coordinated as a tridentate via a P, N, O donor set. The Pd(II) and Pt(II) complexes have a square planar geometry, whereas the geometry of the Ni(II) complex is tetrahedral. The ligand showed antibacterial and antifungal activity, which was enhanced upon complexation.     

Accreditation of GMO detection laboratories: Improving the reliability of GMO detection

Reliable and efficient methods for detecting genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are essential for establishing an effective system for traceability all along the supply chain from seed producers to final consumers. The latter is especially meaningful in European Union and other countries where strict legislations on GMOs were set up. Performance of the methods used in laboratories around the world should be uniform, in order to obtain reliable and comparable results. Accreditation is a suitable system for harmonising procedures in each testing laboratory. In this paper, key elements for the accreditation of molecular biology methods for GMO detection according to ISO/IEC 17025 are described. The procedures described are also valuable for the accreditation of molecular methods for all laboratory diagnostics where qualitative and quantitative characterisation of nucleic acids is needed.     

Sodium citrate dihydrate doped with Mn3+ ions

Sodium citrate dihydrate doped with Mn³⁺ ions, namely trisodium(I) managnese(III) citrate(3−) dihydrate, [Na₃Mn_0.011(C₆H₅O₇)(H₂O)₂]_n, was obtained during attempts to prepare some complex Mn^III citrates from a concentrated strong alkaline solution containing Na⁺, Mn³⁺ and citrate ions. The compound is isostructural with the recently described Na₃(C₆H₅O₇)·2H₂O [Fischer & Palladino (2003). Acta Cryst. E 59 , m1080–m1082]. The essential difference between these two structures is the presence of a very small proportion (0.205 wt%) of Mn³⁺ ions, which are positioned at the special 4e Wyckoff position in C2/c, where they are in a highly distorted octahedral environment of O atoms from two citrate anions.     

Simulations and Velocity Measurements for a Microparticle in an Evanescent Field

We report theoretical calculations and experimental data for guiding of polystyrene microspheres in the evanescent field of an optical waveguide. The waveguides used in our experiments were made using Cs⁺ ion-exchange in soda lime glass, which gives efficient trapping and high guiding velocities. The computations were done using a generalized version of Mie scattering theory, which gives good agreement with our experimental results. © 2005 The Optical Society of Japan