Optimization of Solvent Terminated Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction of Copper Ions in Water and Food Samples Using Artificial Neural Networks Coupled Bees Algorithm

Estimated daily intake and health risk assessment of toxic elements in infant formulas

In this study, the heavy metal (Al, Mn, Co, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Cd, Sn, Pb and Hg) concentrations were determined in a total of seventy-two infant formula samples manufactured by sixteen different brands in Türkiye. During the analyses, inductively coupled plasma MS was used in evaluating the nutritional profile and the toxicological risk associated with the consumption of these products. Given the analysis results, the highest Pb content was found in milk-based 'beginner' formulas (0-6 months, three samples) packed in metal containers. The highest concentration of Mn was found in powdered infant formula (Brand 3) that is suitable for 9-12-month-olds. Mn level was found to be above the limit values in nine samples (12·5 %). Cd level exceeded the limit values in two infant formula samples of Brand 3 (0·038 µg/g) and Brand 15 (0·023 µg/g). Therefore, the mean Cd concentration found here reaches the maximum limit set by the European Union commission legislation. Cu was detected in all infant formulas. The highest concentration was determined in Brand 1 (9-12 months, seven samples) and found to be 2·637 (sd 1·928) µg/g. This value is much higher than the reference values set in the national and international standards. Based on the results achieved here, the estimated daily intake (EDI) and target hazard quotient values for all the metals in infant formulas were found lower than < 1. These findings suggest that the baby foods examined would not pose any health risk. The daily intakes exceeding the baby nutrition values recommended by the WHO would pose health risk since they would exceed the EDI levels.

Determination of Ultra-Trace Amounts of Copper in Environmental Water Samples by Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction Combined with Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry

A new method of dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) combined with graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) was proposed for the determination of ultra-trace copper. It was based on the reaction of Cu(II) with the laboratory-prepared chelating agent 2-(5-bromo-2-pyridylazo)-5-dimethylaminoaniline (5-Br-PADMA) in a HAc-NaAc buffer solution at pH 5.0 to form stable hydrophobic chelates, which were separated and enriched by DLLME with chlorobenzene (C6H5Cl) and acetonitrile (CH3CN) as extraction and disperser solvents, respectively. The sedimented phase containing the chelates was then determined with GFAAS. Various operating variables that may be affected by the extraction process such as the pH of the solution, the concentration of the chelating agent 5-Br-PADMA, the types and volumes of extraction and disperser solvents, the extraction time, and the centrifugation time were investigated. Under optimum conditions, the calibration curve was linear in the range from 0.02 ng/mL to 0.16 ng/mL of copper with a correlation coefficient of r = 0.9961, and the detection limit was 0.01 ng/mL based on 3Sb. The relative standard deviation for six replicate measurements of 0.05 ng /mL of copper was 3.9%. An enrichment factor (EF) of 110 was obtained. The method has the advantages of low detection limit, high sensitivity, simple operation, less consumption of organic solvents, higher enrichment factor, and environmental friendliness and was applied to the determination of trace copper in environmental water samples with satisfactory results.

Modeling of malachite green adsorption onto novel polyurethane/SrFe12O19/clinoptilolite nanocomposite using response surface methodology and biogeography-based optimization-assisted multilayer neural network

This research studied the modeling of malachite green (MG) adsorption onto novel polyurethane/SrFe₁₂O₁₉/clinoptilolite (PU/SrM/CLP) nanocomposite from aqueous solutions by the application of biogeography-based optimization (BBO) algorithm-assisted multilayer neural networks (MNN-BBO) as a new evolutionary algorithm in environmental science. The PU/SrM/CLP nanocomposite was successfully fabricated and characterized by some spectroscopic analyses. Four variables influencing the removal efficiency were modeled by MNN-BBO and response surface methodology (RSM). The MNN-BBO model gave higher percentage removal (99.6%) about 7.6% compared to the RSM technique. Under optimal conditions obtained by MNN-BBO, the four independent variables including pH, shaking rate, initial concentration, and adsorbent dosage were 6.5, 255 rpm, 50 mg.L^-1, and 0.08 g, respectively. Under these conditions, the results were fitted well to the Langmuir isotherm with a monolayer maximum amount of sorbate uptake (q_max) of 68.49 mg.g^-1 and the pseudo-first-order kinetic pattern with the rate constant (K₁) of 0.01 min^-1 with the R² values of 0.9248 and 0.9980, respectively. The results of thermodynamics demonstrated that the MG uptake was not spontaneous due to the positive value of the adsorption ΔG. In addition, the positive values of ΔS (0.079 kJ/mol K) and ΔH (30.816 kJ/mol) indicated the feasible operation and endothermic approach, respectively. Besides, the wastewater investigations showed that the nanocomposite could be used as a new promising sorbent for efficient removal of MG (R% > 72) and magnetically separable from the real samples.

Toxicity of bean cooking media containing EDTA in mice

The possible renal and hepatic toxicities of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) in bean cooking media were studied using 100 male albino mice. Two sublethal doses of EDTA were used to explore their toxic effects; 20 mg/kg and 200 mg/kg, which corresponded to 1/100th and 1/10th of LD₅₀, respectively. Accordingly, the toxicity study was performed using 50 mice, divided into five groups (n = 10/group) as follows: group 1 (Gp1) served as a negative control and was orally administered normal saline; group 2 (Gp2) was administered the bean cooking medium; group 3 (Gp3) was administered EDTA (200 mg/kg); group 4 (Gp4) was administered bean cooking medium containing 20 mg/kg of EDTA; and group 5 (Gp5) was administered bean cooking medium containing 200 mg/kg of EDTA. The results showed no significant changes in liver and kidney functions in Gp2 while Gp3, Gp4, and Gp5 exhibited significant increases in adverse liver and kidney function markers. Hematocrit values were significantly decreased in Gp3 and Gp5, while the total white blood cells counts were significantly decreased in Gp3 and significantly increased in Gp5. The number of platelets was decreased in Gp3, Gp4, and Gp5. The blood levels of sodium (Na⁺), iron (Fe²⁺), and calcium (Ca²⁺) were decreased in Gp3, Gp4, and Gp5 due to the chelating effects of EDTA. The hepatic and renal architectures were disorganized in Gp3, Gp4, and Gp5 with some hemorrhagic manifestations in livers and kidneys of mice. These results demonstrate that EDTA in bean cooking is harmful in mice under the conditions of this study, and the potentially harmful effects in humans supports restricting its use.

Rapid extraction of copper ions in water, tea, milk and apple juice by solvent-terminated dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction using p-sulfonatocalix (4) arene: optimization by artificial neural networks coupled bat inspired algorithm and response surface methodology

A bat inspired algorithm with the aid of artificial neural networks (ANN-BA) has been used for the first time in chemistry and food sciences to optimize solvent-terminated dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (ST-DLLME) as a green, fast and low cost technique for determination of Cu²⁺ ions in water and food samples using p-sulfonatocalix (4) arene as a complexing reagent. For this purpose, the influence of four important factors four factors which was influenced on the extraction efficiency such as salt addition, solution pH and disperser and extraction solvent volumes were investigated. Central composite design (CCD) as a comparative technique was employed for optimization of ST-DLLME efficiency. The ANN-BA optimization technique was regarded as a superior model due to its higher value of extraction efficiency (about 7.21%) compared to CCD method. Under ANN-BA optimal conditions, the limit of quantitation (S/N = 10), limit of detection (S/N = 3) and linear range were 0.35, 0.12 and 0.35-1000 µg L^-1, respectively. In these circumstances, the percentage recoveries for drinking tea, apple juice, milk, bottled drinking water, river and well water spiked with 0.05, 0.1 and 0.2 mg L^-1 of Cu²⁺ ions were in the acceptable range (91.4-107.1%). In comparison to other methods, the developed ST-DLLME method showed the lowest solvent and sample consumption, shortest value of extraction time, most suitable determination and detection limits and linear range with simple and low cost apparatus. Additionally, the use of bat inspired algorithm as a powerful metaheuristic algorithm with the aid of artificial networks is another advantage of the present work.

Estimated dietary intake of essential elements from four selected staple foods in Najran City, Saudi Arabia

The estimated dietary intake (EDI) of essential elements selenium (Se), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn) and copper (Cu) has not been previously investigated for Najran city, Saudi Arabia. This type of information can be valuable for protecting public health. The aim of this study was to estimate the EDI of these elements. A food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was completed by the study participants (n = 80) to obtain dietary intake of selected staple foods (rice, wheat, meat and chicken). The concentrations of Se, Zn, Mn and Cu in these staple foods were determined using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The ranges of concentrations (mg/kg, wet weight) were as follows: Se (0.07–0.24), Zn (3.91–20.89), Mn (0.63–14.69) and Cu (0.69–2.41). The calculated ranges of EDIs (mg/kg bw/day) for the essential elements were as follows: Se 9.55 × 10⁻⁵–5.75 × 10⁻⁴, Zn 1.33 × 10⁻²–5.83 × 10⁻², Mn 1.49 × 10⁻³–3.31 × 10⁻², Cu 1.65 × 10⁻³–5.42 × 10⁻³. The highest EDI for Cu and Mn came from wheat. In the case of Se and Zn, the foods that contributed the highest EDI were chicken and meat, respectively. The lowest EDIs were found for Se in wheat, Zn in rice and both Mn and Cu in chicken. The percentages (%) of provisional maximum tolerable daily intake (PMTDI) for Se, Zn, Mn and Cu were 13%, 11%, 14% and 3.4%, respectively when contributions from all the four classes of foods were combined. The percentage of the recommended daily allowance (RDA) derived from these foods were 80%, 20%, 17% and 5.6% for Se, Zn, Mn and Cu were, respectively. This raises the possibility of Cu deficiency in the Najran population. However, a total diet study and human biomonitoring study is needed in the future to fully assess if people in Najran city are at risk of deficiency or excessive exposure to trace elements.

Simultaneous extraction of Cu2+ and Cd2+ ions in water, wastewater, and food samples using solvent-terminated dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction: optimization by multiobjective evolutionary algorithm based on decomposition

Solvent-terminated dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (ST-DLLME) as a simple, fast, and low-cost technique was developed for simultaneous extraction of Cd²⁺ and Cu²⁺ ions in aqueous solutions. Multiobjective evolutionary algorithm based on decomposition with the aid of artificial neural networks (ANN-MOEA/D) was used for the first time in chemistry, environment, and food sciences to optimize several independent variables affecting the extraction efficiency, including disperser volume and extraction solvent volume, pH, and salt addition. To perform the ST-DLLME operations, xylene, methanol, and dithizone were utilized as an extraction solvent, disperser solvent, and chelating agent, respectively. Non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm versions II and III (NSGA II and NSGA III) as multiobjective metaheuristic algorithms and in addition central composite design (CCD) were studied as comparable optimization methods. A comparison of results from these techniques revealed that ANN-MOEA/D model was the best optimization technique owing to its highest efficiency (97.6% for Cd²⁺ and 98.3% for Cu²⁺). Under optimal conditions obtained by ANN-MOEAD, the detection limit (S/N = 3), the quantitation limit(S/N = 10), and the linear range for Cu²⁺ were 0.05, 0.15, and 0.15-1000 μg L^-1, respectively, and for Cd²⁺ were 0.07, 0.21, and 0.21-750 μg L^-1, respectively. The real sample recoveries at a spiking level of 0.05, 0.1, and 0.3 mg L^-1 of Cu²⁺ and Cd²⁺ ions under the optimal conditions obtained by ANN-MOEA/D ranged from 94.8 to 105%.

Rapid Analysis of Acrylamide in Tap and Well Water Samples by Solvent Terminated Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction Followed by GC-FID

A fast, green and low cost method for analysis of acrylamide in tap and well water has been presented for the first time using solvent terminated-dispersive liquid liquid microextraction (ST-DLLME) with a simple equipment which does not need centrifugation step followed by GC-FID. The use of one variable at a time optimization method revealed that methanol and octanone were the superior disperser and extraction solvents, respectively. A central composite design (CCD) as a response surface methodology was used for multivariate optimization of five independent factors (volumes of extraction and dispersive solvents, pH, salt addition and extraction time) on the extraction efficiency. Under CCD optimal conditions, the linear range, detection limit (S/N = 3) and quantitation limit (S/N = 10) were 0.1, 0.3 and 0.3-550 ng mL^-1, respectively. In these circumstances, the recoveries for real samples (tap and well water) spiked with 0.5, 1 and 10 ng g^-1 were in the acceptable range (90.8%-94.1%). In comparison with other methods in the literature, the suggested ST-DLLME approach showed the best analytical performance. The presented green method has potential application as a routine method in the environmental and analytical laboratories for analysis of acrylamide in water samples.

Cooking with EDTA reduces nutritional value of Vicia faba beans

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Chefs used EDTA to accelerate the cooking time of Vicia faba beans.

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By ESI-MS analysis, disodium EDTA disappeared after cooking process of beans.

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Up on EDTA addition during cooking, essential nutrients changed.

Ethylenediamine terta-acetic acid (EDTA) used to accelerate the cooking process of Vicia (V. faba) beans. In this study, the effect of cooking with EDTA on the nutritional value of V. faba beans was addressed. Water contents, total proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, minerals and amino acids were determined before and after boiling with EDTA (2 g/L). In both of whole beans and seed coats, the water content was increased after boiling with EDTA. In contrast, the levels of proteins, lipids and carbohydrates were significantly decreased in both the whole beans and seed coats upon boiling with EDTA. Furthermore, the levels of sodium were increased while, the levels of other minerals were decreased. All amino acids were significantly decreased in the whole beans and increased in the seed coats after boiling with EDTA. EDTA addition to V. faba beans during the cooking process decreased the nutritional value of the cooked V. faba beans.