Measurement of Beryllium in Biological Samples by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry: Applications for Studying Chronic Beryllium Disease

Porous durian shell biochar modified by KMnO4 (Mn-DSB) as a highly selective adsorbent for Be(II)

The mining of uranium-beryllium ores has resulted in substantial beryllium (Be) contamination. In this study, agricultural waste durian shells were utilized as raw materials to prepare biochar, which was further modified to enhance its adsorption capacity (Mn-DSB). The results effectively demonstrated Mn loading onto the DSB surface. Batch experiments were conducted to identify the optimal adsorption conditions of Mn-DSB for beryllium. At a temperature of 35 °C and pH 6, beryllium's maximum adsorption capacity (Qe) was 42.08 mg·g-1. The materials' internal structure was analyzed before and after adsorption via multiple techniques. Mn-DSB manifested potent selectivity towards beryllium in multicomponent mixed solutions, binary systems, and uranium-beryllium wastewater, as the beryllium removal rate exceeded 90%. The study investigated the recyclability of Mn-DSB and found that after five reuse cycles, the adsorption and desorption efficiencies were 90% and 85%, respectively. The strong ligand complexation (N-H, CO32-, -OH) and ion exchange mechanisms (with Mn7+ ions) of Mn-DSB explained its high adsorption capacity. Therefore, this study demonstrates the potential of Mn-DSB for treating uranium-beryllium tailing wastewater.

Effect of mechanical-chemical modification on adsorption of beryllium by calcite

The treatment of beryllium wastewater has become a major problem in industry. In this paper, CaCO3 is creatively proposed to treat beryllium-containing wastewater. Calcite was modified by an omnidirectional planetary ball mill by a mechanical-chemical method. The results show that the maximum adsorption capacity of CaCO3 for beryllium is up to 45 mg/g. The optimum treatment conditions were pH = 7 and the amount of adsorbent was 1 g/L, and the best removal rate was 99%. The concentration of beryllium in the CaCO3-treated solution is less than 5 μg/L, which meets the international emission standard. The results show that the surface co-precipitation reaction between CaCO3 and Be (II) mainly occurs. Two different precipitates are generated on the used-CaCO3 surface; one is the tightly connected Be (OH)2 precipitation, and the other is the loose Be2(OH)2CO3 precipitation. When the pH of the solution exceeds 5.5, Be2+ in the solution is first precipitated by Be (OH)2. After CaCO3 is added, CO32- will further react with Be3(OH)33+ to form Be2(OH)2CO3 precipitation. CaCO3 can be considered as an adsorbent with great potential to remove beryllium from industrial wastewater.

Adsorptive removal of beryllium by Fe-modified activated carbon prepared from lotus leaf

Lotus leaf was used as raw material to prepare HNO₃-activated carbon with 1.5:1 (HNO₃:lotus leaf) (wt:wt) impregnation. Then, the activated carbon was modified by Fe(NO₃)₃ to obtain Fe-activated carbon (Fe-AC). The adsorption test results show that Fe-AC maximum saturated adsorption capacity (Q_m) is 45.68 mg/g when the Fe(NO₃)₃ loading is 5% of the total activated carbon, pH = 6, and the temperature is 35 ℃. The adsorption effect of Fe-AC under neutral conditions is better than that under alkaline and acidic conditions. The modified activated carbon has better adsorption selectivity. The obtained material (Fe-AC) was characterized by N₂ adsorption-desorption isotherm, SEM, FT-IR, BET, XRD, XPS, and pH_pzc. The total pore volume, specific surface area, and zero charges of modified activated carbon were increased. The types of modified functional groups were reduced, and the iron reacted with the functional groups, providing ion exchange sites for the adsorption of beryllium. The adsorption thermodynamics showed that the adsorption process was spontaneous and endothermic. The adsorption mechanism of Fe-AC to beryllium is mainly chemical adsorption.

Accelerator mass spectrometry detection of beryllium ions in the antigen processing and presentation pathway

Exposure to small amounts of beryllium (Be) can result in beryllium sensitization and progression to Chronic Beryllium Disease (CBD). In CBD, beryllium is presented to Be-responsive T-cells by professional antigen-presenting cells (APC). This presentation drives T-cell proliferation and pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL-2, TNFα, and IFNγ) production and leads to granuloma formation. The mechanism by which beryllium enters an APC and is processed to become part of the beryllium antigen complex has not yet been elucidated. Developing techniques for beryllium detection with enough sensitivity has presented a barrier to further investigation. The objective of this study was to demonstrate that Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) is sensitive enough to quantify the amount of beryllium presented by APC to stimulate Be-responsive T-cells. To achieve this goal, APC - which may or may not stimulate Be-responsive T-cells - were cultured with Be-ferritin. Then, by utilizing AMS, the amount of beryllium processed for presentation was determined. Further, IFNγ intracellular cytokine assays were performed to demonstrate that Be-ferritin (at levels used in the experiments) could stimulate Be-responsive T-cells when presented by an APC of the correct HLA type (HLA-DP0201). The results indicated that Be-responsive T-cells expressed IFNγ only when APC with the correct HLA type were able to process Be for presentation. Utilizing AMS, it was determined that APC with HLA-DP0201 had membrane fractions containing 0.17-0.59 ng Be and APC with HLA-DP0401 had membrane fractions bearing 0.40-0.45 ng Be. However, HLA-DP0401 APC had 20-times more Be associated with the whole cells (57.68-61.12 ng) than HLA-DP0201 APC (0.90-3.49 ng). As these findings demonstrate, AMS detection of picogram levels of Be processed by APC is possible. Further, regardless of form, Be requires processing by APC to successfully stimulate Be-responsive T-cells to generate IFNγ.

Applications of accelerator mass spectrometry for pharmacological and toxicological research

The technique of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS), known for radiocarbon dating of archeological specimens, has revolutionized high-sensitivity isotope detection in pharmacology and toxicology by allowing the direct determination of the amount of isotope in a sample rather than measuring its decay. It can quantify many isotopes, including 26Al, 14C, 41Ca, and 3H with detection down to attomole (10(-18)) amounts. Pharmacokinetic data in humans have been achieved with ultra-low levels of radiolabel. One of the most exciting biomedical applications of AMS with 14C-labeled potential carcinogens is the detection of modified proteins or DNA in tissues. The relationship between low-level exposure and covalent binding of genotoxic chemicals has been compared in rodents and humans. Such compounds include heterocyclic amines, benzene, and tamoxifen. Other applications range from measuring the absorption of 26Al to monitoring 41Ca turnover in bone. In epoxy-embedded tissue sections, high-resolution imaging of 14C label in cells is possible. The uses of AMS are becoming more widespread with the availability of instrumentation dedicated to the analysis of biomedical samples.