A sensitive UPLC–MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of polyphenols in rat plasma: Application to a pharmacokinetic study of dispensing granules and standard decoction of Cinnamomum cassia twigs

This study established a rapid and reliable approach using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry for the simultaneous determination of cinnamic acid, vanillic acid and protocatechuic acid in rat plasma. This is the first report on a comparative pharmacokinetic study of dispensing granules and standard decoction of Cinnamomum cassia twigs in rats. After liquid–liquid extraction by ethyl acetate, the plasma samples were subjected to LC–MS/MS for multiple reaction monitoring. The standard curves showed good linear regression (r² > 0.9991) in the range of 10.0–16000 ng/mL. The intra‐ and inter‐day accuracy and precision were found to be within 15% of the nominal concentration. The recoveries of the three phenolics ranged from 88.7 to 105.7%. Finally, this approach was successfully applied to pharmacokinetic analysis of the three phenolics after oral administration of standard decoction and dispensing granules of C. cassia twigs in rats. Although the values of AUC_0–t of vanillic acid and protocatechuic acid in standard decoction group were larger than those of the dispensing granule group, no significant difference was observed for the two groups. Of note, the elimination rates of vanillic acid were slower in the standard decoction group than the dispensing granule group.     

Simultaneous determination of baicalin,oroxylin A‐7‐O‐glucuronide and wogonoside in rat plasma by UPLC‐DAD and its application in pharmacokinetics of pure baicalin,Radix Scutellariae and Yinhuang granule

A novel UPLC‐DAD method was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of baicalin (baicalein‐7‐glucuronide, BG), oroxylin A‐7‐O‐glucuronide (OAG) and wogonoside (WG) in rat plasma using rutin as the internal standard. Plasma samples were precipitated using acetonitrile containing 0.1% formic acid. Separation was performed on an Agilent Eclipse Plus C₁₈ column (2.1 × 50 mm, 1.8 µm) using gradient acetonitrile and 0.2% formic acid water solution as mobile phase. The flow‐rate was set at 0.4 mL/min and the eluate was detected at 275 nm. The method was linear over the ranges of 0.075–17.50, 0.050–12.60 and 0.056–14.10 µg/mL for BG, OAG and WG, respectively. The intra‐ and inter‐day precisions were respectively <4.8% and 6.4%. All of the limits of detection of three analytes in rat plasma were 0.01 µg/mL, whereas the limits of quantification were, respectively, 0.035, 0.025 and, 0.025 µg/mL. This assay has been successfully applied to pharmacokinetics of BG, OAG and WG in rats after oral administration of Yinhuang granule (YHG) and comparative pharmacokinetics of BG in rats following oral administration of the pure BG, Radix Scutellariae (RS) or YHG. We speculate that some co‐existing ingredients in RS or YHG may increase the absorption and elimination of BG in rat. This work may be helpful for the quality control of Yinhuang granule. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Wetting Behavior of Spherical Particles in Narrow Retaining Vessels

The capillarity-driven ascent of liquid through certain elementary assemblies of equal spherical particles held in a neutrally wetted container is considered and the conditions for liquid to flow are established. For flow through the assembly to be possible, critical contact angles of the liquid on the spheres must not be exceeded. These critical angles are considerably lower than the 90° which the Washburn equation predicts. Finally, the effect of sphere size disparity (or polydispersity) is considered in an Appendix. It is shown that wetting of the assembly may be controlled by manipulation of size distributions as well as by change in the contact angle. Experimental evidence in support of these ideas is presented for a two-dimensional array.     

含铁磁颗粒的颗粒膜自旋激发弛豫研究

应用s-d交换作用模型，在对自旋格林函数s-d交换相互作用单环近似下，求出了含铁磁纳米颗粒的颗粒膜中自旋激发弛豫.并以(a-C：H)_1-xCo_x颗粒膜 为例，探讨了自旋激发弛豫随温度的变化规律.结果表明：经自旋极化激发实现的自旋激化弛豫过程与温度无关，而经热激活的自旋激发弛豫过程与温度有关. 关键词： 自旋激发弛豫 颗粒膜 铁磁颗粒     

沙漠的沙粒物理特性分析

以北京北郊的沙漠沙为研究对象,对其多种物理特性进行测量和分析,提取其中的流体力学和粉体力学特征,建立这些特性参数之间的横向联系,指出了圆度、粒径分布和平均粒径等形貌特征参数对于沙粒的颗粒间作用力效果的重要影响;用测量结果验证和解释了沙丘结构的一些现象和规律。     

CHARACTERIZATION AND ADSORPTION PROPERTIES OF POROUS CARBON NANOFIBER GRANULES

The properties of the porous granules produced by agglomeration of catalytically grown carbon nanofibers were investigated in this work. The single pellet crushing strength of the granules is high, e.g., 1.6-2.5 MPa. They have high specific surface areas, averaging 72-141 m^2·g^-1, and the majority of their pores are mesopores or macropores. The adsorption at 298 K of benzene or phenol on the granules is much lower than that on activated carbon and depends not only on the specific surface area of the carbon material but also on the sewing structure of the granules and the morphology of the carbon nanofibers. Treatment in dilute nitric acid appreciably reduces such adsorption.     

Comparative analysis of the main bioactive components of Xin‐Sheng‐Hua granule and its single herbs by ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry

Xin‐Sheng‐Hua granule, a representative formula for postpartum hemorrhage, has been used clinically to treat postpartum diseases. Its main bioactive components comprise aromatic acids, phthalides, alkaloids, flavonoids, and gingerols among others. To investigate the changes in main bioactive constituents in its seven single herbs before and after compatibility, a rapid, simple, and sensitive method was developed for comparative analysis of 27 main bioactive components by using ultrahigh‐performance liquid chromatography with triple quadrupole electrospray tandem mass spectrometry for the first time. The sufficient separation of 27 target constituents was achieved on a Thermo Scientific Hypersil GOLD column (100 mm × 3 mm, 1.9 μm) within 20 min under the optimized chromatographic conditions. Compared with the theoretical content, the observed content of each analyte showed remarkable differences in Xin‐Sheng‐Hua granule except thymine, p‐coumaric acid, senkyunolide I, senkyunolide H, and ligustilide; the total contents of 27 components increased significantly, and the content variation degrees for the different components were gingerols > flavonoids > aromatic acids > alkaloids > phthalides. The results could provide a good reference for the quality control of Xin‐Sheng‐Hua granule and might be helpful to interpret the drug interactions based on variation of bioactive components in formulae.     

非对称场流分离系统的构建及其在淀粉颗粒粒径表征中的应用

淀粉颗粒粒径与分子尺寸分别在1~100 μm和20~250 nm之间,是影响淀粉功能特性的重要因素之一。非对称场流分离(AF4)是一种基于样品与外力场相互作用机制的分离技术,已应用于表征淀粉分子尺寸分布。商品化的AF4系统的粒径检测范围为1 nm~10 μm,对于淀粉颗粒粒径表征具有一定的局限性。该文研制了AF4分离系统;考察了其在微米尺度下对红薯、莲子和大米淀粉颗粒粒径表征的性能;采用微米尺寸的聚苯乙烯乳化球(PS)标准样品验证了构建的AF4系统的分离性能。实验结果显示,构建的AF4系统对PS混合样品(粒径2、6、12、20 μm)实现了基线分离,同商品化AF4相比提高了检测上线,具有分离表征淀粉颗粒的潜力。此外,该文研究了载液组成对淀粉颗粒分离表征的影响;通过光学显微镜验证了构建的AF4系统在微米尺度上对淀粉颗粒粒径分布的表征能力。最后,采用商品化的AF4系统串联多角度激光光散射检测器和示差折光检测器对3种淀粉分子进行了分离表征,考察了淀粉的溶解温度对其表征结果的影响。在摩尔质量10 ⁶~10⁸ g/mol范围内,红薯和莲子淀粉的回转半径和水合半径的比值(R_g/R_h)在0.9~1.1之间,大米淀粉的R_g/R_h在1.2~1.4之间。实验结果证明构建的AF4系统是一种快速、准确的淀粉颗粒粒径表征方法,与商品化的AF4系统结合可为研究淀粉尺寸分布与其功能性质之间的关系提供技术支持。     

Thermoplastic Cellulose-Based Compound for Additive Manufacturing

The increasing environmental awareness is driving towards novel sustainable high-performance materials applicable for future manufacturing technologies like additive manufacturing (AM). Cellulose is abundantly available renewable and sustainable raw material. This work focused on studying the properties of thermoplastic cellulose-based composites and their properties using injection molding and 3D printing of granules. The aim was to maximize the cellulose content in composites. Different compounds were prepared using cellulose acetate propionate (CAP) and commercial cellulose acetate propionate with plasticizer (CP) as polymer matrices, microcellulose (mc) and novel cellulose-ester additives; cellulose octanoate (C8) and cellulose palmitate (C16). The performance of compounds was compared to a commercial poly(lactic acid)-based cellulose fiber containing composite. As a result, CP-based compounds had tensile and Charpy impact strength properties comparable to commercial reference, but lower modulus. CP-compounds showed glass transition temperature (Tg) over 58% and heat distortion temperature (HDT) 12% higher compared to reference. CAP with C16 had HDT 82.1 °C. All the compounds were 3D printable using granular printing, but CAP compounds had challenges with printed layer adhesion. This study shows the potential to tailor thermoplastic cellulose-based composite materials, although more research is needed before obtaining all-cellulose 3D printable composite material with high-performance.     

自动电位滴定法测定火试金合粒中银

建立了自动电位滴定法测定火试金合粒中银的分析方法。试金合粒采用硝酸溶解,以硫氰酸钾溶液滴定银量。选定了仪器的最优条件,考察了酸度、共存元素对测定的影响。方法相对标准偏差为0.53%~0.89%,测定结果与硫氰酸钾滴定法和减杂质法相一致。方法的准确度和精密度均能满足分析需要,具有较强的实用性。