Using an on-line microdialysis/HPLC system for the simultaneous determination of melamine and cyanuric acid in non-dairy creamer

The recent revelation of melamine (MEL) contamination in foodstuffs in China has rocked the international public health community. Many food categories have been involved in this scandal, including non-dairy creamer (NDC). In this study, we investigated the use of hollow-fiber microdialysis (MD) sampling coupled on-line with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) as an alternative to sample pretreatment for the direct determination of MEL and its analogue cyanuric acid (CYA) in NDC. After MD sampling, the dialysate was injected on-line into the chromatographic system for analysis of MEL and CYA with UV detection at 203 nm. We monitored the effects of various parameters affecting the MD efficiency, namely the characteristics of the MD probe membrane, the flow-rate and the nature of the polarity modifier in the perfusion stream, and the addition of salt in the sample solution. The optimal enrichment efficiency for collecting MEL and CYA from aqueous NDC samples occurred with MD sampling using a hollow polysulfone MD fiber and MeOH as the perfusate at a flow rate of 10 μL min⁻¹. The optimized chromatographic conditions involved using a reversed-phase phenyl column and a mobile phase of 5 mM phosphate buffer in 10% (v/v) MeOH, buffered at pH 6.5. Detection was linear in the concentration range from 0.02 to 5 ppm for MEL and from 2 to 100 ppm for CYA, with detection limits of 1 ppb for MEL and 30 ppb for CYA. The volume of perfusate required to extract MEL and CYA from the NDC solution was only 21 μL. The total MD sampling time was 2.1 min. This method allows the sensitive, eco-friendly, and rapid determination of MEL and CYA in NDC—a risk food for economically motivated adulteration.     

The Amomum tsao-ko Essential Oils Inhibited Inflammation and Apoptosis through p38/JNK MAPK Signaling Pathway and Alleviated Gentamicin-Induced Acute Kidney Injury

The clinical application of gentamicin may lead to acute kidney injury (AKI), and the nephrotoxicity of gentamicin is related to the pathological mechanism of several oxidative and inflammatory cytokines. Plant-derived essential oils have good anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This study aimed to clarify the protective effect of Amomum tsao-ko essential oils (AOs) on gentamicin-induced AKI in rats and its possible mechanism. The rat AKI model was induced by intraperitoneal injection of gentamicin. After 14 days of oral AO treatment, the renal function and pathological changes of the kidney tissues were evaluated, and the level of kidney tissue oxidative stress was detected. The content of inflammatory cytokines was measured by ELISA. The expression of ERK1/2, JNK1/2, p38, NF-κB, caspase-3, and Bax/Bcl-2 proteins were estimated by Western blot analysis. The results showed that taking AO reduced the contents of serum urea and creatinine in AKI rats and improve the pathological changes and oxidative stress of the kidney tissue in rats. At the same time, AO reduced inflammation and apoptosis during AKI by regulating the MAPK pathway. The data show that AO has a protective effect on the kidneys and may be a potential drug for treating kidney injury.     

Functionalized Ultrasmall Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for T1-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Tumor Hypoxia

Hypoxia is a common biological condition in many malignant solid tumors that plays an imperative role in regulating tumor growth and impacting the treatment’s therapeutic effect. Therefore, the hypoxia assessment is of great significance in predicting tumor development and evaluating its prognosis. Among the plenty of existing tumor diagnosis techniques, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers certain distinctive features, such as being free of ionizing radiation and providing images with a high spatial resolution. In this study, we develop a fluorescent traceable and hypoxia-sensitive T₁-weighted MRI probe (Fe₃O₄-Met-Cy5.5) via conjugating notable hypoxia-sensitive metronidazole moiety and Cy5.5 dye with ultrasmall iron oxide (Fe₃O₄) nanoparticles. The results of in vitro and in vivo experiments show that Fe₃O₄-Met-Cy5.5 has excellent performance in relaxivity, biocompatibility, and hypoxia specificity. More importantly, the obvious signal enhancement in hypoxic areas indicates that the probe has great feasibility for sensing tumor hypoxia via T₁-weighted MRI. These promising results may unlock the potential of Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles as T₁-weighted contrast agents for the development of clinical hypoxia probes.     

基于低压补气的变转速冷藏系统的性能研究

针对冷库运行过程中出现的压缩机排气温度高、系统性能衰减等问题,设计并搭建了基于平行流换热器的低压补气冷藏系统实验台对冷藏系统在低压补气和不补气状态下压缩机转速对冷藏系统综合性能的影响进行了分析.结果 表明:随着压缩机转速的增加,两种工况下压缩机排气温度都会增加,在补气模式下排气温度增加了5％,在不补气模式下增加了7.8...     

Statistical thermodynamics of polydisperse polymer blends with strong interaction

A statistical thermodynamics theory of polydisperse polymer mixtures with strong interaction between dissimilar components based on a lattice fluid model is formulated. Expressions for the free energy, equation of state, phase stability and spinodal for a polydisperse, binary polymer mixture with strong interaction are derived.     

Synthesis, structures, and magnetic properties of carboxylate-bridged trinuclear complexes based on low-spin manganese(III)/iron(III) building blocks

Four linear trinuclear transition metal complexes have been prepared and characterized. The complexes [M^II(MeOH)₄][Fe^III(L)₂]₂·2MeOH (M = Fe (1) or Ni (2)), [Co^II(EtOH)₂(H₂O)₂][Fe^III(L)₂]₂·2EtOH (3), and [Mn^II(phen)₂][Mn^III(L)₂]₂·4MeOH (4) (H₂L = ((2-carboxyphenyl)azo)-benzaldoxime, phen = 1,10-phenanthroline) possesses a similar syn–anti carboxylate-bridged structure. The terminal Fe(III) or Mn(III) ions are low spin, and the central M(II) ions are high spin. Magnetic measurements show that antiferromagnetic interactions were present between the adjacent metal ions via the syn–anti carboxylate bridges. The antiferromagnetic coupling between low-spin Fe(III) and Ni(II) is unusual, which has been tentatively assigned to the structural distortion of Fe(III).     

A study on the preparation and characteristics of zeolite membrane PLOT column by in-situ synthesis

Summary The preparation of a zeolite membrane PLOT column by in-situ synthesis is described. The advantages of this new column are discussed. Some analytical applications to alkanes, arenes, esters, alkyl halides and ethers on the zeolite membrane PLOT column compared with those on a coated zeolite PLOT column are reported.     

Palladium-catalyzed stereospecific 1,4-hydrogen migration of cis-cyclohex-2-en-1,4-diol systems

It has been revealed that the generation of 2-cyclohexenones from cis-1,4-dihydroxycyclohexene derivatives under PdCl₂(PPh₃)₂-HCO₂NH₄ system takes place in an intramolecular pathway involving unprecedented mode of suprafacial 1,4-hydrogen migration across the 1,4-allylic centers.