Continuous flow systems for the determination of trace elements and metals in seafood

Probing metabolic stability of CdSe nanoparticles: alkaline extraction of free cadmium from liver and kidney samples of rats exposed to CdSe nanoparticles

Cadmium selenide nanoparticles (CdSe NPs) exhibit novel optoelectronic properties for potential biomedical applications. However, their metabolic stability is not fully understood because of the difficulties in measurement of free Cd from biological tissues of exposed individuals. In this study, alkaline dissolution with tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) is demonstrated for selective determination of free Cd and intact NPs from liver and kidney samples of animals that were exposed to thiol-capped CdSe NPs. Aqueous suspensions of CdSe NPs (3.2 nm) were used to optimize the conditions for extracting free Cd without affecting NPs. Nanoparticles were found to aggregate when heated in TMAH without releasing any significant Cd to solution. Performance of the method in discriminating free Cd and intact NPs were verified by Dogfish Liver (DOLT-4) certified reference material. The samples from the animals were digested in 4 mL TMAH at 70°C to extract free Cd followed by analysis of aqueous phase by ICP-MS. Both liver and kidney contained significant levels of free Cd. Total Cd was higher in the liver, while kidney accumulated mostly free Cd such that up to 47.9% of total Cd in the kidney was free Cd when NPs were exposed to UV-light before injection.

Determination of mercury in fish by cold vapor atomic absorption spectrophotometry using a multicommuted flow injection analysis system

A flow system was developed for the determination of total mercury concentration in fish samples by cold vapor atomic absorption spectrophotometry (CVAAS), based on the multicommuted flow injection analysis (MCFIA) approach. The system uses independently controlled solenoid valves for the introduction of reagents and samples. When not injected, solutions were recirculating to the reservoir bottles, in this way reducing the waste produced by the analytical system and also the sample consumption. Results were compared to those obtained by the reference flow injection procedure. Accuracy was also assessed by recovery studies using a certified reference material as well as spiked samples; recovery percentages in the range of 90.7% to 99.8% were found. The repeatability of the method was better than 6.0% (RSD, n = 10). A limit of detection of 4.8 microg of mercury per kg of fresh fish sample was achieved. The total waste produced was reduced to 30% of that from the reference flow injection CVAAS procedure.