Determination of plasma amitriptyline by electron-capture gas chromatography after oxidation to anthraquinone.

A selective procedure is described for the determination of amitriptyline in plasma. The method involves extraction, separation of amitriptyline from its metabolites and subsequent oxidation by ceric sulphate in 5.4 M sulphuric acid. The oxidation product, anthraquinone, is determined by means of electron-capture gas chromatography. The metabolites were separated by a column chromatographic extraction technique. The choice of oxidation reagent, optimum conditions for the oxidation, and the electron-capture properties of anthraquinone are discussed. The method can be used to determine down to 2 ng of amitriptyline in a plasma sample; the relative standard deviation at the 50-ng level was 4.0% (n = 8). The levels of amitriptyline found in a series of plasma samples are compared with those obtained by gas chromatography with use of nitrogen-specific detection; the two techniques gave coincident results.     

The first tetranuclear vanadium(V) peroxo complex: Preparation, vibrational spectra and X-ray crystal structure of K6[V4O4(O2)8(PO4)]·9H2O

The vanadium(V) peroxo phosphato complex K₇[V₄O₄(O₂)₈(PO₄)]·9H₂O has been obtained from the KVO₃---KH₂PO₄---KOH---H₂O₂---H₂O---C₂H₅OH system. The X-ray structural analysis revealed a tetranuclear anionic structure in which two dinuclear [V₂O₂(O)₂)₂(μ-η¹ : η²-O₂)₂] units are connected by the μ₄-PO₄ group.     

Study on surfactant coating of polymeric nanoparticles for controlled delivery of anticancer drug

Biodegradable nanoparticles loaded with anticancer drug paclitaxel and appropriately coated with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyethylene glycol (PEG) as well as d--tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate (TPGS) were produced and characterised by various analysis techniques such as laser light scattering (LLS) for particle size and size distribution, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) for particle morphology, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier Transform Infrared-Photoacoustic Spectroscopy (FTIR-PAS) for surface chemistry, and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for drug encapsulation efficiency (EE) and in vitro release kinetics. The emphasis was given to the possible effects of surface coating on the physicochemical and pharmaceutical properties of paclitaxel loaded nanoparticles. It was found that the type and amount of the surfactant could significantly affect the drug EE in the nanoparticles, the particles characteristics and their in vitro release behaviour. The surfactants dominated on the nanoparticles surface and the coated nanoparticles displayed in spherical shape with relative smooth surface within the resolution scope of the equipment. The particle size and size distribution showed close relation to the surface coating, which may also be responsible for the drug encapsulation efficiency and the in vitro release kinetics. A favourable formulation of drug loaded nanoparticles of desired properties could be obtained by optimising the fabrication parameters.     

Lead tetraacetate-iodine oxidation of 23-spirostanols

Reactions of 23R- and 23S-23-spirostanols in the 25R and 25S series with lead tetraacetate-iodine were studied. The reactions carried out at low temperature afforded d-seco-iododialdehydes and C₂₂ lactones, while similar reactions performed in refluxing tetrachloromethane yielded 20-chlorolactones and their 21-acetoxy derivatives irrespective of the hydroxyl group configuration at C-23. The reaction mechanisms are discussed.     

Middle-phase microemulsions of green surfactant alkyl polyglucosides

Microemulsions are important organized molecular assembles in surfactant solutions and are used in various fields such as tertiary oil recovery, pharmaceutics, cosmetics, nanoparticle synthe-sis and chemical engineering. The more commonly used nonionic surfactants to produce micro- emulsions are the ethylene oxide-based compounds (CiEj). In recent years alkyl polyglucosides have been received considerable attention in producing microemulsions[17]. Alkyl polyglucosides (APG), which are widely…     

Two new standard reference materials for the determination of drugs of abuse in human hair

Two new standard reference materials (SRM) for drugs of abuse in human hair have been developed. SRM 2379 consists of hair spiked with cocaine, benzoylecgonine, cocaethylene, phencyclidine, amphetamine, and methamphetamine. SRM 2380 consists of hair spiked with codeine, morphine, monoacetylmorphine, and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The SRMs were prepared by soaking the hair in a solution of the target analytes in water-dimethylsulfoxide. The concentration of each analyte was determined using two methods, one based upon gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and one based upon liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS). Both methods used 0.1 M HCl for extraction of all the analytes from the hair, except for THC, which was extracted with 1 M NaOH. For isolation of the analytes from the extracts, the GC/MS-based methods used different clean-up procedures from those used for the LC/MS-based methods. The results from the two methods were in good agreement with mean differences for the analytes ranging from 4% to 16%. These materials will enable laboratories performing analyses of hair for drugs of abuse to test the accuracy of their methods.     

Evaluation of the redox properties and anti/pro-oxidant effects of selected flavonoids by means of a DNA-based electrochemical biosensor

Quercetin and rutin as well as catechin and epigallocatechin gallate were investigated, as widely distributed representatives of flavonols and flavanols, respectively, regarding their anti/pro-oxidant properties. The flavonoids are irreversibly oxidized at a dsDNA-modified screen-printed electrode within 0.368 to 0.449 V vs. SHE without binding to DNA. Using the DNA biosensor the detection scheme of a DNA prevention/degradation exploits the [Co(phen)(3)](3+) complex as an electrochemical DNA marker. Antioxidant activity of flavonoids was tested in a model cleavage mixture composed of 5 x 10(-7) mol L(-1) [Cu(phen)(2)](2+) as the catalyst, 1 x 10(-3) mol L(-1) ascorbic acid as the chemical reductant and atmospheric oxygen as the natural oxidant where reactive oxygen radicals are generated. The antioxidant activity increases with the concentration of flavonoids reaching a maximum where pro-oxidative behaviour becomes of importance. The pro-oxidant potency of flavonoids depends on the presence of atmospheric oxygen and follows the order quercetin>rutin>epigallocatechin gallate>catechin.     

Poly(vinyl alcohol)/poly(<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-isopropylacrylamide) semi-interpenetrating polymer network hydrogels with rapid response to temperature changes

A series of thermosensitive and fast-response poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPA) hydrogels were prepared by incorporating PVA into cross-linked PNIPA to form a semi-interpenetrating polymeric network (semi-IPN). Compared to the conventional PNIPA hydrogel, the semi-IPN hydrogels thus prepared exhibit significantly faster response rates and undergo full deswelling in 1 min (lose about 95% water within 1 min) when the temperature is raised above their lower critical solution temperature, and have larger equilibrium swelling ratios at room temperature. These improved properties are attributed to the incorporation of PVA, which forms water-releasing channels and results in increased hydrophilicity, into the PNIPA hydrogel networks.     

How does product isotope effect prove the operation of a two-state "rebound" mechanism in C-H hydroxylation by cytochrome P450?

C-H hydroxylation is a fundamental process. In Nature it is catalyzed by the enzyme cytochrome P450, in a still-debated mechanism that poses a major intellectual challenge for both experiment and theory; currently, the opinions keep swaying between the original single-state rebound mechanism, a two-oxidant mechanism (where ferric peroxide participates as a second oxidant, in addition to the primary active species, the high-valent iron-oxo species), and two-state reactivity (TSR) mechanism (where two spin states are involved). Recent product isotope effect (PIE) measurements for the trans-2-phenyl-methyl cyclopropane probe (1), led Newcomb and co-workers (Newcomb, M.; Aebisher, D.; Shen, R.; Esala, R.; Chandrasena, P.; Hollenberg, P.; Coon, M. J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2003, 125, 6064-6065) to rule out TSR in favor of the two-oxidant scenario, since the direction of the PIE was at odds with the one predicted from calculations on methane hydroxylation. The present report describes a density functional theoretical study of C-H hydroxylation of the Newcomb probe, 1, leading to rearranged (3) and unrearranged (2) products. Our study shows that the reaction occurs via TSR in which the high-spin pathway gives dominant rearranged products, whereas the low-spin pathway favors unrearranged products. The calculated PIE(2/3) values based on TSR are found to be in excellent agreement with the experimental data of Newcomb and co-workers. This match between experiment and theory makes a strong case that the reaction occurs via TSR mechanism.