Extensive evaluation of plasma metabolic sample preparation process based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and its application in the in vivo metabolism of Shuang-Huang-Lian powder injection

Shuang-Huang-Lian powder injection (SHLPI) is a natural drug injection made of honeysuckle, scutellaria baicalensis and forsythia suspensa. It has the characteristics of complex chemical composition and difficult metabolism research in vivo. LC-MS platform has been proven to be an important analytical technology in plasma metabolomics. Unfortunately, the lack of an effective sample preparation strategy before analysis often significantly impacts experimental results. In this work, twenty-one extraction protocols including eight protein precipitation (PPT), eight liquid-liquid extractions (LLE), four solid-phase extractions (SPE), and one ultrafiltration (U) were simultaneously evaluated using plasma metabolism of SHLPI in vivo. In addition, a strategy of "feature ion extraction of the multi-component metabolic platform of traditional Chinese medicine" (FMM strategy) was proposed for the in-depth characterization of metabolites after intravenous injection of SHLPI in rats. The results showed that the LLE-3 protocol (Pentanol:Tetrahydrofuran:H2O, 1:4:35, v:v:v) was the most effective strategy in the in vivo metabolic detection of SHLPI. Furthermore, we used the FMM strategy to elaborate the in vivo metabolic pathways of six representative substances in SHLPI components. This research was completed by ion migration quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometer combined with ultra high performance liquid chromatography (UPLC/Vion™-IMS-QTof-MS) and UNIFI™ metabolic platform. The results showed that 114 metabolites were identified or preliminarily identified in rat plasma. This work provides relevant data and information for further research on the pharmacodynamic substances and in vivo mechanisms of SHLPI. Meanwhile, it also proves that LLE-3 and FMM strategies could achieve the in-depth characterization of complex natural drug metabolites related to Shuang-Huang-Lian in vivo.

Trends in microextraction approaches for handling human hair extracts - A review

The complementary role of hair in testing scenarios has expanded across the spectrum of toxicological and clinical monitoring investigations and, over the last 20 years, hair analysis has gained increasing attention and recognition. Moreover, a great deal of attention has been paid to the miniaturisation of extraction procedures, minimising/eliminating toxic organic solvents consumption, making them user-friendly and rapid, in addition to maximising extraction efficiency. The aim of this work is to provide a critical review of the advances observed over the last 5 years in the use of miniaturised approaches for sample clean-up and drug pre-concentration in hair analysis. There have been major improvements in some well-established microextraction approaches, such as liquid phase microextraction, mainly through the use of supramolecular and ionic liquids. In addition, new developments have also been reported in solid phase microextraction, driven by d-SPE applications. In the last 5 years, a total of 69 articles have been published using some type of microextraction technique for hair specimens, thus justifying the relevance of a critical review of innovations, improvements and trends related to these miniaturised approaches for sample preparation.

Combination of supramolecular solvent-based microextraction and ultrasound-assisted extraction for cadmium determination in flaxseed flour by thermospray flame furnace atomic absorption spectrometry

This study describes the development of a new analytical method for cadmium determination in flaxseed flour based on ultrasound-assisted extraction combined with supramolecular preconcentration followed by thermospray flame furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. Cadmium from flaxseed flour was extracted by ultrasound-assisted radiation in acid medium (1.5 mol L-1HNO3) followed by liquid-liquid microextraction of the acid extractwith dodecanoic acid/THF supramolecular solvent using diethyl dithiophosphate as a chelating agent. The limit of detection and the analytical curve range were found to be 0.10 μg L-1 and 0.35 to 20.0 μg L-1, respectively. The cadmium concentration in the flaxseed flours was ranged from 0.11 ± 0.04 to 0.79 ± 0.03 µg g-1. The proposed methodis considered simpler, faster, low-cost, and environmentally friendly compared to procedures currently used for the determination of cadmium based on acid digestion and using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry.

Sustainable green solvents for microextraction techniques: Recent developments and applications

The development and application of alternative green solvents in analytical techniques consist of trends in sample preparation, since this subject represents an important step toward sustainability in experimental procedures. This review is focused on the main theoretical aspects related to deep eutectic solvents (DES), switchable hydrophilicity solvents (SHS) and supramolecular solvents (SUPRAS). Recent applications are highlighted, particularly for the extraction of different analytes from environmental, biological and food matrices. Moreover, novel configurations are emphasized, aiming for efficient, automated and high-throughput procedures. This review also provides some critical points regarding the use of these solvents and their green aspects.

Green Supramolecular Solvent-Based Liquid-Phase Microextraction Method for Spectrophotometric Determination of Aluminum in Food, Water, Hair and Urine Samples

Background:

Aluminum Al(III) is the most significant metal in the earth's crust to which humans are frequently exposed and has several industrial applications. On the other hand, Al (III) has high potential toxic impacts on some human pathologies like Parkinson and Alzheimer's disease. So, it is very important to monitor and determine the trace level of Al (III) in various environmental and biological samples.

Objective:

In the present work, a novel green supramolecular Solvent-Based Liquid-Phase Microextraction (SS-LPME) procedure has been developed to preconcentrate and determine aluminum (III) in various real samples.

Methods:

The proposed procedure was based on the application of 1-decanol/THF as a Supramolecular Solvent (SS) system and quinalizarin as a chelating agent. Al(III)-quinalizarin hydrophobic complex was obtained at pH 7.0, extracted into supramolecular solvent phase (1- decanol/THF), centrifuged and then measured spectrophotometrically at 580 nm. The impact of different analytical parameters on the microextraction efficiency was studied and optimized. The validation of the proposed preconcentration procedure was checked using certified reference materials.

Results:

The calibration curve was linear in the range of 2.0-150 μg L-1. The developed method has preconcentration factor of 40 and detection limit (LOD) was 0.20 μg L-1. The precision of the method was confirmed with low relative standard deviation (RSD ≤ 1.0%).

Conclusion:

This study explores the effectiveness of quinalizarin for the first time together with SS to develop green SS-LPME method to preconcentrate and separate trace quantities of Al (III) in real water, fruit juice, food, hair, and urine samples collected from Saudi Arabia.

A new supramolecular based liquid solid microextraction method for preconcentration and determination of trace bismuth in human blood serum and hair samples by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

A simple and reliable supramolecule-aggregated liquid solid microextraction method is described for preconcentration and determination of trace amounts of bismuth in water as well as human blood serum and hair samples. Catanionic microstructures of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) surfactants, dissolved in deionized water/propanol, are used as a green solvent to extract bismuth (III)-diethyldithiocarbamate complexes by dispersive microextraction methodology. The extracted solid phase is easily removed and dissolved in 50 μL propanol for subsequent measurement by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ET-AAS). The procedure benefits the merits of supramolecule aggregates' properties and dispersive microextraction technique using water as the main component of disperser solvent, leading to direct interaction with analyte. Phase separation behavior of extraction solvent and different parameters influencing the extraction efficiency of bismuth ion such as salt concentration, pH, centrifugation time, amount of chelating agent, SDS:CTAB mole ratio, and solvent amounts were thoroughly optimized. Under the optimal experimental conditions, the calibration curve was linear in the range of 0.3-6 μg L^-1 Bi (III) with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.16 μg L^-1 (S/N = 3). The relative standard deviations (RSD) of determination were obtained to be 5.1 and 6.2 % for 1 and 3 μg L^-1 of Bi (III), respectively. The developed method was successfully applied as a sensitive and accurate technique for determination of bismuth ion in human blood serum, hair samples, and a certified reference material.

A Simple Organic Solvent-Free Liquid-Liquid Microextraction Method for the Determination of Potentially Toxic Metals as 2-(5-Bromo-2-pyridylazo)-5-(diethylamino)phenol Complex from Food and Biological Samples

An organic solvent-free method was developed to extract some potentially toxic metals, as complexed with 2-(5-bromo-2-pyridylazo)-5-(diethylamino)phenol, from different real samples prior to their determination by microsampling flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The method, named ionic liquid-based ultrasound-enhanced air-assisted liquid-liquid microextraction (IL-USE-AALLME), is based upon withdrawing and pushing out a mixture of an aqueous sample and an IL (as the extraction solvent) for several times into a conical test tube using a single syringe, placed in an ultrasound bath (as the enhancing mass transfer agent) during the extraction process. Different effective parameters were studied, and at the optimized conditions, limits of detection, linear dynamic ranges, and enrichment factors were ranged from 0.9 to 2.2 μg L(-1), 3.0 to 1023 μg L(-1), and 20 ± 2 to 22 ± 2, respectively. After optimization, the method was successfully applied to determine Pb(2+), Cu(2+), Co(2+), Ni(2+), and Cr(3+) in different biological (hair and nail), vegetable (coriander, parsley, and tarragon), fruit juice (apple, orange, and peach), and water (tap, mineral, and wastewater) samples. The proposed method was compared with two other IL-based and disperser solvent-free methods (i.e., IL-based air-assisted liquid-liquid microextraction and IL-based ultrasound-assisted emulsification microextraction) to demonstrate its performance.

Zein bio-nanoparticles: a novel green nanopolymer as a dispersive solid-phase extraction adsorbent for separating and determining trace amounts of azorubine in different foodstuffs

A new, easy, and green method using zein nanoparticles as a dispersive solid-phase extraction (DSPE) adsorbent has been used for the preconcentration of azorubine (a well-known chemical dye additive) as a model compound in foodstuffs.

Covalently bonded double-charged ionic liquid on magnetic graphene oxide as a novel, efficient, magnetically separable and reusable sorbent for extraction of heavy metals from medicine capsules

Development of a new SPE sorbent with a chemically bonded double-charged ionic liquid on magnetic graphene oxide to solve the disadvantages of ionic liquid based SPE methods.

Application of a tandem air-agitated liquid–liquid microextraction technique based on solidification of floating organic droplets as an efficient extraction method for determination of cholesterol-lowering drugs in complicated matrices

To enhance sample clean-up in dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction in complicated matrices, a low-toxicity and sensitive extraction method, tandem air-agitated liquid–liquid microextraction, based on solidification of floating organic droplets is introduced.

Modification of cellulose paper with polydopamine as a thin film microextraction phase for detection of nitrophenols in oil samples

Polydopamine cellulose paper was used as a novel extraction phase to detect nitrophenols in oil samples.

Copper selective self-sorting polymeric resin with mixed-mode functionality for column preconcentration and atomic absorption spectrometric determination

A new approach for the synthesis of a highly Cu(ii) selective mixed-mode solid phase extractant is proposed.

Supramolecular solvent based liquid–liquid microextraction of aluminum from water and hair samples prior to UV-visible spectrophotometric detection

A new method for the microextraction of aluminum from water and hair samples has been developed using a supramolecular solvent (undecanol–tetrahydrofuran) prior to UV-visible spectrophotometric determination.

Synthesis and characterization of diphenylcarbazide-siliceous mesocellular foam and its application as a novel mesoporous sorbent for preconcentration and trace detection of copper and cadmium ions

We are introducing diphenylcarbazide functionalized siliceous mesocellular foam as a novel mesoporous solid-phase for the extraction of heavy metal ions including copper(ii) and cadmium(ii).