Pulsed arterial spin labeling perfusion imaging at 3 T: estimating the number of subjects required in common designs of clinical trials

Pulsed arterial spin labeling (PASL) is an increasingly common technique for noninvasively measuring cerebral blood flow (CBF) and has previously been shown to have good repeatability. It is likely to find a place in clinical trials and in particular the investigation of pharmaceutical agents active in the central nervous system. We aimed to estimate the sample sizes necessary to detect regional changes in CBF in common types of clinical trial design including (a) between groups, (b) a two-period crossover and (3) within-session single dosing. Whole brain CBF data were acquired at 3 T in two independent groups of healthy volunteers at rest; one of the groups underwent a repeat scan. Using these data, we were able to estimate between-groups, between-session and within-session variability along with regional mean estimates of CBF. We assessed the number of PASL tag-control image pairs that was needed to provide stable regional estimates of CBF and variability of regional CBF across groups. Forty tag-control image pairs, which take approximately 3 min to acquire using a single inversion label delay time, were adequate for providing stable CBF estimates at the group level. Power calculations based on the variance estimates of regional CBF measurements suggest that comparatively small cohorts are adequate. For example, detecting a 15% change in CBF, depending on the region of interest, requires from 7-15 subjects per group in a crossover design, 6-10 subjects in a within-session design and 20-41 subjects in a between-groups design. Such sample sizes make feasible the use of such CBF measurements in clinical trials of drugs.     

Determination of antibiotic residues in honey

Honey produced by honeybees is a valuable food product. The presence of xenobiotics in honey may harm its quality and constitute a danger to human health. Antibiotics are commonly applied by beekeepers to eliminate disease among honeybees. Moreover, ubiquitous administration of antibiotics may cause bacteria to become resistant to many drugs and spread antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. Appropriate sample preparation and determination of antibiotics at very low concentrations in foodstuffs are real analytical challenges. This article reviews analytical methods used for determination of residues of different sorts of antibiotic in honey and other honeybee products.     

On-line combination of single-drop liquid–liquid–liquid microextraction with capillary electrophoresis for sample cleanup and preconcentration: A simple and efficient approach to determining trace analyte in real matrices

In order to improve the sensitivity of capillary electrophoresis (CE) and overcome the deficiency of commercial CE instruments in handling complex matrices directly, we proposed a novel technique which combined single-drop liquid–liquid–liquid microextraction (SD-LLLME) with CE on-line. In this technique, SD-LLLME was realized using a commercial CE instrument and, to further concentrate the target analyte, large-volume sample stacking combined sweeping without polarity switching was utilized. Even though without agitating the donor phase in the extraction process, the model compound, adenine was enriched 550-fold in only 10 min. The enrichment factors were 760 and 1030 when the extraction time was extended to 30 and 60 min, respectively. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) of adenine were 5.24% and 2.29% for peak area and migration time, respectively, which indicated that this method was much more reproducible compared to the existing methods that combined sample-preparation strategies with CE. In addition, this approach was selective while cleaning up target analyte. These mentioned advantages allowed the developed method to be an attractive approach to determining trace target compounds in complex real samples.     

Denumerable controlled Markov chains with average reward criterion: Sample path optimality

We consider discrete-time nonlinear controlled stochastic systems, modeled by controlled Makov chains with denumerable state space and compact action space. The corresponding stochastic control problem of maximizing average rewards in the long-run is studied. Departing from the most common position which usesexpected values of rewards, we focus on a sample path analysis of the stream of states/rewards. Under a Lyapunov function condition, we show that stationary policies obtained from the average reward optimality equation are not only average reward optimal, but indeed sample path average reward optimal, for almost all sample paths.Research supported by a U.S.-México Collaborative Research Program funded by the National Science Foundation under grant NSF-INT 9201430, and by CONACyT-MEXICO.Partially supported by the MAXTOR Foundation for applied Probability and Statistics, under grant No. 01-01-56/04-93.Research partially supported by the Engineering Foundation under grant RI-A-93-10, and by a grant from the AT&T Foundation.     

Clean-up of some organochlorine and pyrethroid insecticides by automated solid-phase extraction cartridges coupled to capillary GC-ECD

The ASPEC (Automatic Sample Preparation with Extraction Columns) system has been coupled on-line to capillary GC-ECD by means of a loop-type interface equipped with a solvent vapour exit. Both ASPEC and GC conditions have been optimized leading to an effective clean-up of the extracts analyzed. By means of solid-phase extraction cartridges filled with silica, it has been possible to analyze concentrated surface water extracts for a group of 18 electron-capturing compounds present in the water at ppt levels. ASPEC-GC has also been applied to the determination of synthetic pyrethroids at ppt levels in surface water. The complete analytical procedure is greatly facilitated by automation and miniaturization. Miniaturization results in a considerable decrease in the sample volume required. The potential of the method for the analysis of other pesticides is estimated.     

Reversed‐phase vortex‐assisted liquid–liquid microextraction: A new sample preparation method for the determination of amygdalin in oil and kernel samples

A novel, simple, and rapid reversed‐phase vortex‐assisted liquid–liquid microextraction coupled with high‐performance liquid chromatography has been introduced for the extraction, clean‐up, and preconcentration of amygdalin in oil and kernel samples. In this technique, deionized water was used as the extracting solvent. Unlike the reversed‐phase dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction, dispersive solvent was eliminated in the proposed method. Various parameters that affected the extraction efficiency, such as extracting solvent volume and its pH, vortex, and centrifuging times were evaluated and optimized. The calibration curve shows good linearity (r² = 0.9955) and precision (RSD < 5.2%) in the range of 0.07–20 μg/mL. The limit of detection and limit of quantitation were 0.02 and 0.07 μg/mL, respectively. The recoveries were in the range of 96.0–102.0% with relative standard deviation values ranging from 4.0 to 5.1%. Unlike the conventional extraction methods for plant extracts, no evaporative and re‐solubilizing operations were needed in the proposed technique.     

Determination of hexavalent chromium in traditional Chinese medicines by high‐performance liquid chromatography with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

An analytical method that combined high‐performance liquid chromatography with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry has been developed for the determination of hexavalent chromium in traditional Chinese medicines. Hexavalent chromium was extracted using the alkaline solution. The parameters such as the concentration of alkaline and the extraction temperature have been optimized to minimize the interconversion between trivalent chromium and hexavalent chromium. The extracted hexavalent chromium was separated on a weak anion exchange column in isocratic mode, followed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry determination. To obtain a better chromatographic resolution and sensitivity, 75 mM NH₄NO₃ at pH 7 was selected as the mobile phase. The linearity of the proposed method was investigated in the range of 0.2–5.0 μg L^?1 (r² = 0.9999) for hexavalent chromium. The limits of detection and quantitation are 0.1 and 0.3 μg L^?1, respectively. The developed method was successfully applied to the determination of hexavalent chromium in Chloriti lapis and Lumbricus with satisfactory recoveries of 95.8–112.8%.     

Determination of methylmercury in marine sediment samples: Method validation and occurrence data

The determination of methylmercury (MeHg) in sediment samples is a difficult task due to the extremely low MeHg/THg (total mercury) ratio and species interconversion. Here, we present the method validation of a cost-effective fit-for-purpose analytical procedure for the measurement of MeHg in sediments, which is based on aqueous phase ethylation, followed by purge and trap and hyphenated gas chromatography–pyrolysis–atomic fluorescence spectrometry (GC–Py–AFS) separation and detection. Four different extraction techniques, namely acid and alkaline leaching followed by solvent extraction and evaporation, microwave-assisted extraction with 2-mercaptoethanol, and acid leaching, solvent extraction and back extraction into sodium thiosulfate, were examined regarding their potential to selectively extract MeHg from estuarine sediment IAEA-405 certified reference material (CRM). The procedure based on acid leaching with HNO₃/CuSO₄, solvent extraction and back extraction into Na₂S₂O₃ yielded the highest extraction recovery, i.e., 94 ± 3% and offered the possibility to perform the extraction of a large number of samples in a short time, by eliminating the evaporation step. The artifact formation of MeHg was evaluated by high performance liquid chromatography coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (HPLC–ICP–MS), using isotopically enriched Me²⁰¹Hg and ²⁰²Hg and it was found to be nonexistent. A full validation approach in line with ISO 17025 and Eurachem guidelines was followed. With this in mind, blanks, selectivity, working range (1–800 pg), linearity (0.9995), recovery (94–96%), repeatability (3%), intermediate precision (4%), limit of detection (0.45 pg) and limit of quantification (0.85 pg) were systematically assessed with CRM IAEA-405. The uncertainty budget was calculated and the major contribution to the combined uncertainty (16.24%, k = 2) was found to arise from the uncertainty associated with recovery (74.1%). Demonstration of traceability of measurement results is also presented. The validated measurement procedure was applied to the determination of MeHg incurred in sediments from a highly polluted and scarcely studied area in the Caribbean region.