Semi-micro solvent extraction as a rapid and efficient preconcentration technique for the determination of n-alkanes in oil-contaiminated water and soil samples by capillary gas chromatography

Summary In this study, a rapid and efficient semi-micro extraction procedure is presented for the extraction of some higher n-alkanes from water and soil samples. In the case of water samples n-hexane was used as the organic phase in a phase volume ratio (volume of aqueous phase/volume of organic phase) higher than 285, while in the case of soil samples, extraction with n-hexane was carried out in the presence of an excess of 2 M NaCl solution. The extraction rate from soil samples is very high and is better than Soxhlet extraction, comparable with supercritical fluid extraction. High preconcentration factor in water samples allows the limits of detection to be in the ng.mL⁻¹ level with the use of gas chromatographic analysis. Flame ionization detector was used for monitoring the analytes. The obtained recoveries of all studied compounds from both water and soil samples are higher than 90%. This method was successfully used to determine some n-alkanes in municipal wastewater and contaminated soil.     

Determination of the diastereomers of vitamin K1

A method is described for the gas-chromatographic determination of the diastereomers of vitamin K₁ (phylloquinone) in the form of their dihydro dimethyl ethers. The reported method of derivatization and chromatographic analysis in conjunction with optical rotation measurements are useful approaches for characterization of vitamin K₁ samples with respect to their origin.     

Resonance Rayleigh scattering determination of trace amounts of Al in natural waters and biological samples based on the formation of an Al(III)-morin-surfactant complex

A novel method for the determination of trace amounts of Al(III) based on resonance Rayleigh scattering (RRS) has been developed. In the presence of some surfactants, Al(III) can react with morin and form an Al(III)-morin-surfactant complex, which results in the enhancement of RRS intensity and the appearance of the corresponding RRS spectral characteristics. Their maximum scatter peaks are at 476 nm for the cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) system, 489 nm for the cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) system, 474 nm for the Triton X-100 system, and 473 nm for the Tween-20 system. The enhanced RRS intensity is directly proportional to the concentration of Al(III). The detection limits are in the range of (0.50-1.2)×10⁻⁷ mol l⁻¹ depending on the surfactant. The characteristics of RRS spectra of the complexes, the optimum conditions of these reactions and the influencing factors have been investigated. The method has high selectivity, and was successfully applied to the determination of Al(III) in natural and biological samples. Furthermore, according to different complexation capacity of Al(III)-morin-CTAB system under two pH conditions, speciation analysis of Al(III) in natural waters was explored. The labile monomeric Al fraction (mainly inorganic Al, Al_i) is determined at acidic pH and the total monomeric Al fraction (Al_a) is determined at alkaline pH. The results are in agreement with those obtained by Driscoll’s 8-hydroxyquinoline extraction-ion exchange method.     

Ion-exchange method for separation and concentration of platinum and palladium for analysis of environmental samples by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry

An ion-exchange procedure is proposed for determination of Pt and Pd in environmental samples, using a Dowex 1-X10 anion-exchange resin. Pt and Pd were separated from the matrix elements in the sample by selective retention on the column as anionic chloro complexes and subsequent elution by circulated thiourea at 60 °C. The eluent, containing Pt and Pd was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma (ICP) atomic emission spectrometry (AES). Average recoveries of 98% and detection limit of 15 ng/g for both metals were achieved. Analysis of Pt and Pd concentrations in road dust, sampled from several sites in Germany was performed. The comparison of the obtained data with the concentrations of Pt and Pd in the same samples, determined by ICP-MS showed a very good agreement.     

Voltammetric Behavior of Arsenic(III) in the Presence of Sodium Diethyl Dithiocarbamate and Its Determination in Water and Highly Saline Samples by Adsorptive Stripping Voltammetry

This paper describes the voltammetric behavior of As(III) at the hanging mercury drop electrode (HMDE) in the presence of sodium diethyl dithiocarbamate (SDDC) and a new voltammetric method for the determination of As(III) at trace levels. The method is based on the adsorptive deposition of a As(III) complex with SDDC at ?0.45 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) on the HMDE in acidic medium of 0.01 mol L^?1 HCl (pH 2.0) and its cathodic stripping during the potential scan (100 mV s^?1). The linear range for the determination of As(III) in the presence of SDDC (4 μmol L^?1) in water samples was between 1 and 10 μg L^?1 for a deposition time of 300 s (r=0.994) and between 10 and 100 μg L^?1 for a deposition time of 60 s (r=0.999). For the determination of As(III) in dialysis concentrate samples, the linear range was between 5 and 25 μg L^?1 for a deposition time of 180 s (r=0.992) and between 10 and 100 μg L^?1 for a deposition time of 60 s (r=0.996). Detection limits of 0.3 and 2.2 μg L^?1 in water and dialysis concentrate samples were calculated for the method using a deposition time of 300 and 180 s, respectively. Recovery values between 93.0 and 110.0% for As(III) added to deionized, mineral, seawater (synthetic and real) and dialysis concentrate samples prove the satisfactory accuracy and applicability of the procedure.     

GeneMCL in microarray analysis

Accurately and reliably identifying the actual number of clusters present with a dataset of gene expression profiles, when no additional information on cluster structure is available, is a problem addressed by few algorithms. GeneMCL transforms microarray analysis data into a graph consisting of nodes connected by edges, where the nodes represent genes, and the edges represent the similarity in expression of those genes, as given by a proximity measurement. This measurement is taken to be the Pearson correlation coefficient combined with a local non-linear rescaling step. The resulting graph is input to the Markov Cluster (MCL) algorithm, which is an elegant, deterministic, non-specific and scalable method, which models stochastic flow through the graph. The algorithm is inherently affected by any cluster structure present, and rapidly decomposes a graph into cohesive clusters. The potential of the GeneMCL algorithm is demonstrated with a 5,730 gene subset (IGS) of the Van't Veer breast cancer database, for which the clusterings are shown to reflect underlying biological mechanisms.     

Fermentation of a skim milk concentrate with Streptococcus thermophilus and chymosin: structure, viscoelasticity and syneresis of gels

Fermentation of a reconstituted skim milk concentrate (8% protein) was investigated to elucidate the effects of various fermentation parameters on the structural, rheological and visual (wheying-off) properties of the resulting gels (pH 4.60). Fermentation trials were performed with non-exocellular polysaccharide-producing strains of Streptococcus thermophilus at various fermentation temperatures and at various chymosin levels. Oscillatory vane rheometry carried out on the intact gels (at 4 °C) showed that the level of chymosin had a significant impact on the gel strength (storage modulus G′). This can be explained by the arrangement of casein micelles into more compact aggregates and the enhanced fusion of aggregated casein micelles as revealed by transmission electron microscopy for the gels fermented with chymosin. Wheying-off of the stirred gels as measured by a centrifugation test (at 4 °C) and pore size of the intact gel structures investigated by scanning electron microscopy both increased with increasing level of chymosin and increasing fermentation temperature (resulting in an increase in acidification rate). A higher level of syneresis (wheying-off) is explained by the larger pore size, since larger pores present a lower resistance to the outflow of whey from the gel.     

Catalytic DNA-and RNA-hydrolyzing antibodies from milk of healthy human mothers

Various catalytically active antibodies (Abs), or abzymes, have been detected recently in the sera of patients with autoimmune pathologies, in whom their presence is probably associated with autoimmunization. Normal humans are generally not considered to have abzymes, since no obvious immunizing factors are present. Here is shown by different methods that IgG from the milk of normal females possesses both DNase and RNase activities. The activities were also present in the IgG F(ab′)₂ and Fab fragments. Affinity modification of IgG by the chemically reactive derivative of an oligonucleotide led to preferential modification of the L chain of IgG. After separation of the subunits by sodium dodecyl sulfate electrophoresis in a gel containing DNA, an in-gel assay showed DNase activity in the L chain. The L chain separated by affinity chromatography on DNA-cellulose was catalytically active. These findings speak in favor of the generation of cat alytic Abs by the immune system of healthy mothers. It is known that the treatment of adults with DNases and RNases offers protection from viral and bacterial diseases. Since breast milk protects the infants from infec tions until the immune system is developed, this raises the possibility that catalytic Abs like nucleases, may possess a protective role.     

Application of capillary electrophoresis with different sample stacking strategies for the determination of a group of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the low microg x L(-1) concentration range

Several on-column sample preconcentration modes--large-volume sample stacking using the EOF pump (LVSEP), LVSEP with anion-selective exhaustive injection (LVSEP-ASEI) and field-amplified sample injection with sample matrix removal using the electroosmotic flow (EOF) pump (FAEP)--were used to analyze some nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) by capillary electrophoresis, and then compared. Methanol was the background electrolyte solvent to suppress the EOF. The effect of the type and length of the solvent plug, and the sample injection time were investigated in FAEP to determine the conditions that provided the best response. LVSEP, LVSEP-ASEI, and FAEP improved the sensitivity of the peak area by 100-, 1200-, and 1800-fold, respectively. The methodology developed, in combination with solid-phase extraction (SPE), was applied to the analysis of water samples.     

Determination of metoprolol enantiomers in human urine by GC-MS using (−)-α-methoxy-α-(trifluoromethyl)phenylacetyl chloride as a chiral derivatizing agent

Summary A method for the assay of R-(+)- and S-(−)- metoprolol in human urine has been developed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The method involved purification by liquid-liquid extraction and derivatization with N-methyl-N-(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide to form an O-silyl ether, followed by subsequent chiral derivatization with (−)-α-methoxy-α-(trifluoromethyl)phenylacetyl chloride to form diastereomeric amide. The reaction was rapid and the diastereomeric derivatives were well resolved. Quantitation was performed by selected-ion monitoring of fragment ions of the diastereomers in electron impact ionization mode. No racemization was found during the reaction. The detection limit was 0.5 ng·mL⁻¹. The intra-day variation ranged between 0.38 and 7.86% in relation to the measured concentration and inter-day variation was 2.26–8.06%. The method has been applied to the determination of R-(+)-and S-(−)- metoprolol in human urine from healthy volunteers dosed with racemic metoprolol tartrate.