Enzymatic assay technique for the determination of aspartame

Bienzymatic biosensor for rapid detection of aspartame by flow injection analysis

A rapid, simple and stable biosensor for aspartame detection was developed. Alcohol oxidase (AOX), carboxyl esterase (CaE) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were immobilised with glutaraldehyde (GA) onto screen-printed electrodes modified with cobalt-phthalocyanine (CoPC). The biosensor response was fast. The sample throughput using a flow injection analysis (FIA) system was 40 h⁻¹ with an RSD of 2.7%. The detection limits for both batch and FIA measurements were 0.1 µM for methanol and 0.2 µM for aspartame, respectively. The enzymatic biosensor was successfully applied for aspartame determination in different sample matrices/commercial products (liquid and solid samples) without any pre-treatment step prior to measurement.

Flow-through Spectrophotometric Sensor for the Determination of Aspartame in Low-Calorie and Dietary Products

A very simple flow-through sensor is presented for the determination of the intense sweetener aspartame in low-calorie and dietary products. The sensor is implemented in a monochannel flow-injection system with UV spectrophotometric detection using a Sephadex CM-C25 cationic exchanger packed 20 mm high in a flow cell. This method is based on the transient retention of a cationic species of the sweetener on the solid phase when a pH 5.0 acetic acid sodium acetate buffer (0.01 M) is used as a carrier (2.6 mL(-1) min). The carrier itself elutes the analyte from the solid support, regenerating a sensing zone. Aspartame was determined by measuring its intrinsic absorbance at 219 nm at its residence time without any derivatization. Calibration graphs were linear over the range of 5.0 - 600.0 microg mL(-1) with an RSD of 0.55% (peak height). This sweetener was determined in several samples by measuring the height or peak area, obtaining recoveries ranging between 95 - 101% and 97.5 - 101%, respectively. The procedure was validated for its use in the determination of aspartame in low-calorie and dietary products, giving reproducible and accurate results.

Aspartame degradation study using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Electrospray mass spectrometry was used to simultaneously determine aspartame (APM) and five of its degradation products; aspartic acid, aspartylphenylalanine, 5-benzyl-3,6-dioxo-2-piperazieacetic acid (diketopiperazine), phenylalanine, and phenylalanine methyl ester. Under the ionization conditions used, there was no interfering fragmentation for any of the six compounds, i.e., no fragmentation of the compound being tested into other species also being monitored. A study of APM degradation in solution at various pH's and at various temperatures using this method was performed.

Determination of aspartame by ion chromatography with electrochemical integrated amperometric detection

In this paper, the separation and determination of the sweetener aspartame by ion chromatography coupled with electrochemical amperometric detection is reported. Sodium saccharin, acesulfame-K and aspartame were separated using 27.5 mmol/l NaOH isocratic elution on a Dionex IonPac AS4A-SC separation column. Aspartame can be determined by integrated amperometric detection without interference from the other two sweeteners. The method can be applied to the determination of aspartame in powered tabletop, fruit juice and carbonated beverage samples, and the results obtained by integrated amperometry were in agreement with those obtained using a UV detection method. A method for determining analytes with an NH2 group by ion chromatography with integrated amperometry was developed.

Simple and rapid high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the determination of aspartame and its metabolites in foods

A method for the determination of aspartame (N-L-alpha-aspartyl-L-phenylalanine methyl ester) and its metabolites, applicable on a routine quality assurance basis, is described. Liquid samples (diet Coke, 7-Up, Pepsi, etc.) were injected directly onto a mini-cartridge reversed-phase column on a high-performance liquid chromatographic system, whereas solid samples (Equal, hot chocolate powder, pudding, etc.) were extracted with water. Optimising chromatographic conditions resulted in resolved components of interest within 12 min. The by-products were confirmed by mass spectrometry. Although the method was developed on a two-pump HPLC system fitted with a diode-array detector, it is straightforward and can be transformed to the simplest HPLC configuration. Using a single-piston pump (with damper), a fixed-wavelength detector and a recorder/integrator, the degradation of products can be monitored as they decompose. The results obtained were in harmony with previously reported tedious methods. The method is simple, rapid, quantitative and does not involve complex, hazardous or toxic chemistry.

Comparison of capillary zone electrophoresis with high-performance liquid chromatography for the determination of additives in foodstuffs

A capillary zone electrophoretic (CZE) method was developed to determine caffeine, aspartame and benzoic acid in diet cola soft drinks and in artificial sweetening powders. The effects of pH, ionic strength, organic solvents and different buffers were investigated to select the optimum conditions. These consisted of a sodium phosphate buffer at pH 11 and ionic strength 0.025. The running voltage was set at 15 kV and the injection was performed hydrostatically for 30 s. The CZE method was then compared with a previously developed high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method in terms of repeatability, reproducibility, accuracy, linearity, sensitivity and separation efficiency. Both methods gave good repeatability. The relative standard deviations for reproducibility were significantly higher in CZE than in HPLC. The main reason for this is probably the condition of the wall of the capillary, which was difficult to keep constant between the days of analysis. The separation efficiency of CZE was 65-110 times higher than that of HPLC; on the other hand, 10-20 times lower detection limits were obtained in HPLC. Both methods were linear, but the linear ranges were different owing to the lower detection limit of HPLC. In CZE, the effect of the matrix was higher.