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Biomedical subjects

A Martín-Esteban

Publications and source records attributed to A Martín-Esteban.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

Molecularly imprinted polymers for solid-phase extraction and solid-phase microextraction: recent developments and future trends.

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are synthetic polymers having a predetermined selectivity for a given analyte, or group of structurally related compounds, that make them ideal materials to be used in separation processes. In this sense, during past years a huge amount of papers have been published dealing with the use of MIPs as sorbents in solid-phase extraction, namely molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE). Although the majority of these papers were restricted to describe the use of different templates for different applications, several attempts proposing new alternatives to minimize the inherent drawbacks of the preparation and use of MIPs (i.e. template bleeding, tedious synthesis procedure, etc.) have been reported. Thus, this paper does not pretend to be a collection of MISPE-related papers but to give an overview on the significant attempts carried out during recent years to improve the performance of MIPs in solid-phase extraction. In addition, the use of MIPs packed in high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) columns for the direct injection of crude sample extracts and the preparation of imprinted fibres for solid-phase microextraction will be also discussed.

Combinatorial Chemistry Techniques↗

Semi-covalent imprinted polymer using propazine methacrylate as template molecule for the clean-up of triazines in soil and vegetable samples.

A semi-covalent imprinted polymer was prepared by precipitation polymerisation using propazine methacrylate as template molecule, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as cross-linker and toluene as porogen. After removal of propazine by basic hydrolysis of the covalent bond, the optimum loading, washing and elution conditions for the solid-phase extraction of the selected triazines were established. The binding sites present in the polymeric matrix were characterised by fitting the experimental results of several rebinding studies to the Langmuir-Freundlich isotherm. Subsequently, an analytical methodology based on molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) was developed for the determination of several triazinic herbicides in soil and vegetable samples. Following this procedure, a good degree of clean-up of the sample extracts was easily achieved, allowing the HPLC-UV determination of selected triazines in complex samples at low concentration levels.

Food Contamination↗

Clean-up of triazines in vegetable extracts by molecularly-imprinted solid-phase extraction using a propazine-imprinted polymer.

An analytical methodology based on a molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) procedure was developed for the determination of several triazines (atrazine, simazine, desethylatrazine (DEA), desisopropylatrazine (DIA), and propazine) in vegetable samples. A methacrylic acid-based imprinted polymer was prepared by precipitation polymerisation using propazine as template and toluene as porogen. After removal of the template by Soxhlet extraction, the optimum loading, washing, and elution conditions for MISPE of the selected triazines were established. The optimised MISPE procedure was applied to the extraction of the selected triazines in pea, potato, and corn sample extracts and a high degree of clean-up was obtained. However, some remaining interferences, non-specifically and strongly bound to the polymeric matrix, appeared in the chromatogram, preventing quantification of DIA in potatoes and DIA, DEA, and propazine in corn samples. Thus, a new clean-up protocol based on the use of a non-imprinted polymer for removal of these interferences prior to the MISPE step was developed. By following the new two-step MISPE procedure, the matrix compounds were almost completely removed, allowing the determination of all the triazines selected at concentration levels below the established maximum residue limits, making the developed procedure suitable for monitoring these analytes in vegetable samples.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗

Microwave-assisted extraction method for the determination of atrazine and four organophosphorus pesticides in oranges by gas chromatography (GC).

A simple and rapid microwave assisted extraction (MAE) method is presented for the determination of atrazine and four organophosphorus pesticides (parathionmethyl, chlorpyriphos, fenamiphos and methidathion) in orange peel. The experimental variables that affect the MAE method, such as temperature, sample quantity, extraction time, nature and volume of organic solvents, were optimized. The MAE method was optimized using an experimental design. The results suggest that temperature and sample quantity are statistically significant factors. It was concluded that the five pesticides could be efficiently extracted from 1.5-2.5 g of orange peel with 10 mL of hexane/acetone (1: 1) mixture at 90 degrees C in 9 min with microwave power set at 50% (475 W). After optimization these factors, recoveries ranged from 93 to 101% with a relative standard deviation ranging from 1 to 3%. The extracts were analyzed by gas chromatography with a nitrogen-phosphorus detector (GC-NPD).

Atrazine↗

Baker's yeast biomass (Saccharomyces cerevisae) for selective on-line trace enrichment and liquid chromatography of polar pesticides in water.

Baker's yeast cells (Saccharomices cerevisae) were successfully immobilized onto silica gel and used in the on-line isolation and trace enrichment of desisopropylatrazine, desethylatrazine, hydroxyatrazine, simazine, cyanazine, atrazine, carbaryl, propanil, linuron, and fenamiphos. Since humic and fulvic acids were not coextracted, no cleanup was necessary. The pesticides were spiked at 0.1-1 microgram L-1 in tap water, groundwater, and seawater and were preconcentrated using on-line solid-phase extraction into a yeast immobilized on silica gel precolumn followed by liquid chromatography with diode array detection. All the variables that affect the enrichment step, such as amount of yeast immobilized, dimensions of the precolumn, sample pH, and preconcentration flow rate, were optimized. The degree of selectivity was evaluated by comparing the chromatograms obtained after on-line sample preconcentration on the yeast precolumn with those obtained by on-line solid-phase extraction using a precolumn filled with C18 material. The relative standard deviation for the whole procedure in the determination of the selected pesticides at the 0.3 microgram L-1 concentration level ranged from 1 to 9%, depending on the pesticide and the type of water. Detection limits within the range 0.01-0.5 microgram L-1 were obtained by percolating only 25 mL of water sample without any additional cleanup step.

Biomass↗

Degradation of atrazine and several organophosphorus pesticides in oranges.

The degradation of atrazine and four organophosphorus pesticides (chlorpyriphos, fenamiphos, methidathion and methyl-parathion) in oranges was studied. Oranges were immersed in a Milli-Q water solution spiked with 10 mg litre-1 of each pesticide for one day, allowing their adsorption on the orange peel. Then, the oranges were rinsed with Milli-Q water and left outdoors to expose them to natural ambient conditions for two weeks. In parallel, an aqueous solution containing 1 mg litre-1 of each pesticide was placed in a Pyrex flask, which was tightly closed, and exposed to the same ambient conditions. Both samples (orange peel and Milli-Q water) were analyzed periodically by gas chromatography coupled to a nitrogen-phosphorus detector. The pesticide degradation in both samples could be described using a first-order degradation curve. Half-lives varied from 14.5 to more than 30 days in aqueous solution and from 2.3 to 4.1 days in oranges for organophosphorus pesticides, while those for atrazine were 3.1 days and 14.2 days, respectively. The presence of some organophosphorus degradation products in water samples after storage under the above conditions was confirmed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Atrazine↗