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Simple microwave and thermal cycler boiling methods for preparation of cervicovaginal lavage cell samples prior to PCR for human papillomavirus detection.

Sample preparation is an important step in the detection of viral DNA by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. The method used should achieve release of cellular DNA with the minimum of manipulation steps so as to reduce the possibility of contamination. The present report demonstrates that either microwaving or 20 min of boiling in the heating block of a thermal cycler lead to satisfactory results in the detection by PCR of human papillomavirus in cervicovaginal epithelial cell specimens obtained by lavage. Since each of these methods uses only one step the possibility of contamination is greatly reduced compared to the widely used proteins K/nonionic detergent extraction procedure.

Carcinoma in Situ↗

Microanalytical high-performance liquid chromatographic assay for cefpirome in human milk and urine.

To permit the characterization of cefpirome disposition in lactating females, a previously published high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for determining the drug in serum was adapted for use with milk and urine. This automated, microanalytical technique requires 50 microliters of biological matrix, which is subjected to an isopropanol extraction. Chromatography was accomplished using a microbore HPLC system, a reversed-phase C18 column and a mobile phase of 0.3% triethylamine in water (pH 5.1). Cefpirome and the internal standard (beta-hydroxypropyltheophylline) were monitored using UV detection at 240 nm and had retention times of 2.84 and 5.05 min, respectively. The method was linear up to 500 mg/l for both matrices and had a limit of detection of 0.6 mg/l. The interday variation (relative standard deviation) at concentrations of 5.0, 50.0 and 500.0 mg/l was consistently less than 5% in both urine and breast milk. The method was found to be free from interference by other commonly administered medications and readily adaptable for use in clinical investigations. The ease of sample preparation, small sample volume requirement, short chromatographic time, apparent lack of interferences, analytical sensitivity and high precision and accuracy make this method ideal for use in pharmacokinetic investigations involving the determination of cefpirome in human milk and urine.

Cephalosporins↗

Clinical application of microplate DNA-DNA hybridization procedure for rapid diagnosis of mycobacterial infections.

SETTING: As an alternative to biochemical analysis, microplate DNA-DNA hybridization was applied for rapid diagnosis of mycobacterial infection. OBJECTIVE: To assess how rapidly and correctly the microplate hybridization method can progress from clinical sample to final species identification of mycobacteria. DESIGN: Clinical samples (pooled sputa or bronchial lavage fluid) were obtained from patients. Depending on the estimated bacterial amounts, genetic identification was performed either directly or following primary culture. Extracted DNA labeled by photobiotin was hybridized in microdilution wells with type-strain DNAs from 4 species (Mycobacterium tuberculosis, M. avium, M. intracellulare, and M. kansasii), the identified on the basis of genetic relatedness, which was quantitated by colorimetric detection. RESULTS: With samples containing more than 10(8) colony-forming units [CFU] (5 cases), species identification was successfully performed on the day of sample preparation. With samples of not more than 10(7) CFU (14 cases), although 4-21 days' primary culture were necessary, species were also correctly identified by the microplate method. Furthermore, M. avium and M. intracellulare were distinctly identified. All the results precisely corresponded to those of biochemical analysis, which took 4-12 weeks to complete identification. CONCLUSION: We consider that microplate DNA-DNA hybridization is a dependable technique for rapid diagnosis of mycobacterial infection.

Bacterial Typing Techniques↗

Rapid analysis of 14C and 3H in graphite and concrete for decommissioning of nuclear reactor.

A rapid oxidizing combustion method using a commercial Sample Oxidizer has been investigated to determine separately the 14C and 3H activities in graphite and concrete. By this method the sample preparation time can be reduced to 2-3 min. The detection limits for 3H and 14C are 0.96 and 0.58 Bq/g graphite and 0.11 and 0.06 Bq/g concrete, respectively. The cross contamination of 14C and tritium in the preparation of samples is less than 0.2%. The interference of other radionuclides in the determination of 14C and tritium in graphite is insignificant. The analytical accuracy, investigated by the standard addition method, is better than 95%. In addition, an acid digestion method has also been used to examine the graphite and concrete activities, to allow comparison with the method developed herein. The two methods show good agreement for graphite samples. Graphite samples were collected from the Danish Reactors DR-2 and DR-3, in addition to two concrete cores drilled in the Danish reactor DR-2; these were analysed for 3H and 14C using the method that has been developed.

Journal Article↗

Optimization of evaporation and counting times for measurements of short-lived gamma-ray emitters in water samples.

A methodology how to optimize the throughput of a laboratory when the sample preparation and sample measurement times are related is presented for the case when radioactive decay during the processing time cannot be neglected. It is assumed that the sensitivity of the measurements is prescribed and can be attained by processing a larger sample quantity or by extending the measuring time. The methodology is illustrated for measurements of 131I in samples of the dry residue obtained by evaporation of water. It is demonstrated that the quantities which determine the throughput of the laboratory are the maximum sample size which can be processed, the evaporation rate and the quality of the spectrometers.

Journal Article↗

Determination of ergosterol as an indicator of fungal biomass in various samples using non-discriminating flash pyrolysis.

Ergosterol is the major sterol constituent of most fungi. Since it is present in negligible amounts in higher plants, it can be used as a chemical marker for the presence of fungal contamination. A number of different ergosterol assays have been developed for the quantification of fungi in various samples. The paper presents the development of a new method for ergosterol detection based on the combination of non-discriminating flash pyrolysis with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS). The design of the non-discriminating Py-GC/MS systems assures efficient transfer of high-molecular-weight pyrolysis products to the GC column for separation, followed by analyte detection by MS. The method was tested on different types of samples, including baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), moldy bread, indoor dust, and a leaf infected with powdery mildew. Ergosterol was detected in all these samples at levels ranging from approximately 4 mg/g for the baker's yeast to approximately 6 microg/g for household dust. The main benefits of non-discriminating pyrolysis over other techniques include elimination of the need for sample preparation, small sample size required and short analysis time.

Biomass↗

A 96-well single-pot protein precipitation, liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method for the determination of muraglitazar, a novel diabetes drug, in human plasma.

A 96-well single-pot protein precipitation, liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method has been developed and validated for the determination of muraglitazar, a PPAR alpha/gamma dual agonist, in human plasma. The internal standard, a chemical analogue, was dissolved in acetonitrile containing 0.1% formic acid. The solvent system was also served as a protein precipitation reagent. Human plasma samples (0.1 mL) and the internal standard solution (0.3 mL) were added to a 96-well plate. The plate was vortexed for 1 min and centrifuged for 5 min. Then the supernatant layers were directly injected into the LC/MS/MS system. The chromatographic separation was achieved isocratically on a Phenomenox C18(2) Luna column (2 mm x 50 mm, 5 microm). The mobile phase contained 20/80 (v/v) of water and acetonitrile containing 0.1% formic acid. Detection was by positive ion electrospray tandem mass spectrometry on a Sciex API 3000. The standard curve, which ranged from 1 to 1000 ng/mL, was fitted to a 1/x weighted quadratic regression model. This single-pot approach effectively eliminated three time consuming sample preparation steps: sample transfer, dry-down, and reconstitution before the injection, while it preserved all the benefits of the traditional protein precipitation. By properly adjusting the autosampler needle offset level, only the supernatant was injected, without disturbing the precipitated proteins in the bottom. As a result, the quality of chromatography and column life were not compromised. After more than 600 injections, there was only slightly increase of column back-pressure. The validation results demonstrated that this method was rugged and provide satisfactory precision and accuracy. The method has been successfully applied to analyze human plasma samples in support of a first-in-man study. This method has also been validated in monkey and mouse plasma for the determination of muraglitazar.

Animals↗

Pharmacokinetic study of trimebutine maleate in rabbit blood using in vivo microdialysis coupled to capillary electrophoresis.

In vivo microdialysis was used together with capillary electrophoresis (CE) to monitor the concentration of trimebutine maleate (TM) in rabbit blood. Dialysis probe was perfused at 3 microl/min resulting in relative recovery of 26.6+/-3.1% (n=3). After a one step sample preparation the samples were injected directly into the capillary. TM was detected on-column using UV detector at 214 nm. Separation of TM from other components in the dialysate was achieved within 15 min. Evaluation was based on the relative collected peak height (TM/IS). The response for TM in the blood dialysate was linear over the range of 0.5-100 microg/ml. The detection limit of TM in the blood dialysate was 0.1 microg/ml (S/N=3). This method has been successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of trimebutine maleate in rabbit blood following oral administration of 200 mg/kg. It provides a fast and simple technique for the pharmacokinetic study of TM in vivo.

Administration, Oral↗

Quantitative analysis of paracetamol polymorphs in powder mixtures by FT-Raman spectroscopy and PLS regression.

A fast and simple method for the quantitative analysis of monoclinic (form I) and orthorhombic (form II) paracetamol was developed, based on FT-Raman spectroscopy and PLS regression. Three different preprocessing algorithms, namely orthogonal signal correction (OSC), standard normal variate transformation (SNV) and multiplicative scatter correction (MSC), were applied in order to eliminate effects caused by sample preparation and sample inhomogeneities. Subsequently, PLS regression models were fitted and their predictive performance was evaluated on the basis of the root mean squared error of cross-validation (RMSECV) over the complete data set. Furthermore, the data were split into two equal-sized training and test subsets by the Kennard-Stone design and the errors of calibration (RMSEC) and prediction (RMSEP) were calculated. It was found that the OSC preprocessing contributes to a significant increase in the predictive performance of the PLS regression model (RMSECV=0.500%, RMSEC=0.842% and RMSEP=0.538%) in the overall concentration range of form I, compared to the SNV (RMSECV=2.398%, RMSEC=0.911% and RMSEP=7.177%) and MSC (RMSECV=2.7648%, RMSEC=1.572% and RMSEP=4.838%). In addition, the model developed on OSC preprocessed data is more parsimonious, requiring a single latent variable, compared to three latent variables required by the models fitted to the SNV and MSC preprocessed data. The proposed multivariate calibration presents a significant improvement over existing methods for the quantitation of paracetamol polymorphs.

Acetaminophen↗

Antigenotoxic activity of natural chlorophylls.

Chlorophyllin, a man-made water-soluble form of chlorophyll, is a focus of intensive studies from many laboratories for its antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic properties. Natural chlorophylls, in contrast, have been little studied in this regard. Since yellow-green vegetables are implicated to be protective against human cancers by epidemiological studies, it is important to explore the antigenotoxic properties of natural chlorophylls. Previously, we reported that a chlorophyll sample prepared from Chlorella vulgaris inhibited the mutagenicity of 3-hydroxyamino-1-methyl-5H-pyrido[4,3-b]indole, a direct-acting mutagen, in Salmonella, and that the chlorophyll also showed inhibition of wing spot formation in Drosophila induced by 3-amino-1-methyl-5H-pyrido[4,3-b]indole (Trp-P-2). We have now prepared several samples of chlorophyll from spinach and chlorella, and studied their effect on the genotoxicity of 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide (4NQO) in Drosophila. The results showed that the genotoxicity of orally given 4NQO was suppressed by simultaneous administration of the chlorophylls. The mechanisms of this inhibition are discussed.

4-Nitroquinoline-1-oxide↗

Profiling of amino acids in body fluids and tissues by means of liquid chromatography.

The needs of urgent diagnoses and the needs emerging from acute forms of diseases have directed progress in amino acid profiling to modern, rapid, automated analyses that can be done at reasonable cost. The first step in this direction was the short programmes of classical ion-exchange chromatography. At the beginning of this review we attempted to survey methods of sample preparation and sample treatment, as these are frequently neglected stages where artefacts or erroneous results may arise. There are basically the following approaches in amino acid profiling by liquid chromatographic techniques. For preliminary screening of a large number of samples in clinical routine planar procedures are the methods of choice, as they allow large numbers of samples to be handled with minimum effort and at very reasonable cost. For more precise profiling, particularly where quantitative data are essential, one can choose between some of the modern procedures for separating underivatized amino acids using modern equipment for cation-exchange chromatography, by making use of a stepped series of lithium citrate buffers with ninhydrin, o-phthalaldehyde or 4-fluoro-7-nitrobenzo-2,1,3-oxadiazole detection. Ninhydrin detection is preferred in those situations where the demands on sensitivity are not high. Where, however, only small amounts of samples are available or high sensitivity is required, one of the latter two methods is preferred. The o-phthalaldehyde procedure is not suitable for the detection of secondary amines and, if these are of interest, then diazole derivatization is to be preferred. At present, however, the ninhydrin and o-phthalaldehyde detection procedures are the most popular. The other choice is to use one of the sophisticated HPLC systems equipped with fluorescence detection and to separate amino acids as derivatives. Here o-phthalaldehyde and 4-fluoro-7-nitrobenzo-2,1,3-oxadiazole derivatives offer the most versatile possibilities. Automation and computerization have penetrated both categories of liquid column separation and are applied to automated sample delivery, automated and computerized gradient formation and quantitation of the data obtained. The tables of metabolic disorders of amino acids and the roles of different amino acids in these disorders should provide preliminary information for clinical chemists.

Amino Acids↗

Development of an assay for the simultaneous determination of sildenafil (Viagra) and its metabolite (UK-103,320) using automated sequential trace enrichment of dialysates and high-performance liquid chromatography.

The development of the ASTED (automated sequential trace enrichment of dialysates) system to prepare plasma samples prior to high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) of sildenafil and its demethylated metabolite (UK-103,320) is described. Investigations to elucidate potential pitfalls of the ASTED on-line sample preparation system prior to separation of the analytes by HPLC are presented. The procedure is shown to be selective for sildenafil and UK-103,320, and linear over the range 1.00-250 ng/ml. The intra-batch imprecision (C.V.) of the method at plasma analyte concentrations of 1.00, 5.00, 50.0 and 200 ng/ml was 11.2, 3.10, 1.50, and 1.30%, respectively, and the corresponding inter-batch imprecision was estimated to be 13.5, 7.09, 3.69, and 5.43%. At these plasma analyte concentrations the overall inaccuracy (% bias) of the procedure ranged from 3.6 to 8.4%. The method showed similar assay performance for the estimation of the metabolite, UK-103,320. The application of the assay to a pharmacokinetic investigation during a clinical study is presented.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗

Capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence: a routine method to determine moxifloxacin in human body fluids in very small sample volumes.

The feasibility of capillary electrophoresis with HeCd laser-induced fluorescence detection as a validated routine method for bioanalytical analysis is reported. Method evaluation, validation and results of the determination of moxifloxacin (BAY 12-8039), a new antimicrobially active 8-methoxy-quinolone, in plasma and microdialysate are described. After a one step sample preparation the samples can be injected directly into the capillary. The volume of microdialysate and plasma, respectively, needed for more than 50 injections is only 10 microl and 20 microl. Total run time is less than 7 min using a 27 cm capillary on commercial instrumentation. An analysis time of less than 1 min was shown to be possible, however it could not be used routinely since appropriate instrumentation was not available. Evaluation is based on the relative corrected peak area (analyte/I.S.). The method's dynamic range comprises three orders of magnitude (plasma: 2.5-5000 microg/l; microdialysate: 5-5000 microg/l). Validation according to international guidelines yielded data on accuracy and precision of the method throughout the entire working range of inter-day precision: plasma <6%, microdialysate <5% and inter-day accuracy: plasma <2%, microdialysate <4%. The crossvalidation with an existing HPLC method utilizing clinical study samples shows linear correlation. In view of its adequate sensitivity and high selectivity capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence is a very versatile tool in pharmacokinetic studies of quinolones, especially in situations with limited sample volumes: e. g. pediatrics, patients at risk, animal-, microdialysis- and tissue-kinetic studies. Validation parameters and other features, like high sample throughput and robustness, are comparable to or even better than HPLC. Further necessary improvements of the capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence instrumentation (autosampler, vials, parallel capillaries) and its use in bioanalytical routine analysis are discussed.

Anti-Infective Agents↗

Liquid chromatographic-tandem mass spectrometric method for the determination of the neuraminidase inhibitor zanamivir (GG167) in human serum.

An LC-MS-MS method for the analysis of the neuraminidase inhibitor, zanamivir, in human serum is described. Zanamivir was extracted from protein precipitated human serum samples using Isolute SCX solid-phase extraction cartridges and analysed using reversed-phase chromatography with TurboIonSpray atmospheric pressure ionisation followed by mass spectrometric detection. The method uses a stable isotope internal standard, is highly specific and sensitive for a compound of this type and has been used for the analysis of human serum and urine samples from clinical studies. The method was extended to the analysis of serum and plasma samples from pre-clinical studies involving the rat, ferret and cell culture media. The method has been shown to be robust and valid over a concentration range of 10-5000 ng/ml using a 0.2-ml sample volume. The main advantages of this method compared to earlier procedures are primarily specificity, sensitivity, ease of sample preparation, small sample volume and short analysis time (ca. 5 min).

Animals↗

Kinetics and the on-site application of standards in a solid-phase microextraction fiber.

The kinetics of the desorption of analytes from a SPME fiber into an agitated sample matrix was studied, and a theoretical model was proposed to describe the dynamic desorption process, based on the steady-state diffusion of analytes in the extraction phase and in the boundary layer. It was found that the desorption of analytes from a SPME fiber into an agitated sampling matrix is isotropic to the absorption of the analytes onto the SPME fiber from the sample matrix under the same agitation conditions, and this allows for the calibration of absorption using desorption. The calibration was accomplished by exposing a SPME fiber, preloaded with a standard, to an agitated sample matrix, during which desorption of the standard and absorption of analytes occurred simultaneously. When the standard was the isotopically labeled analogue of the target analyte, the information from the desorption process, i.e., time constant a, could be directly used for estimating the concentration of the target analyte. When the standard varied from the target analyte, the mass-transfer coefficient of the analyte could be extrapolated from that of the standard. These predictions agree well with experimental results. This approach facilitates the full integration of sampling, sample preparation, and sample introduction, especially for on-site or in vivo investigations, where the addition of standards to the sample matrix, or control of the velocity of the sample matrix, is very difficult.

Journal Article↗

High speed, high resolution, and continuous chemical analysis of ice cores using a melter and ion chromatography.

Measurement of trace chemical impurities in ice cores contributes to the reconstruction of records of the atmospheric environment and of the climate system. Ion chromatography (IC) is an effective analytical technique for ionic species in ice cores but has been used on discretely prepared ice samples, resulting in extensive and slow sample preparation and potential for contamination. A new technique has been developed that utilizes IC as the online detection technique in a melter-based continuous flow system for quantitative determination of major ionic chemical impurities. The system, called CFA-IC for continuous flow analysis with ion chromatography detection, consists of an ice core melter, several ion chromatographs, and an interface that distributes meltwater to the IC instruments. The CFA-IC technique combines the accuracy, precision, and ease of use of IC measurement with the enhanced speed and depth resolution of continuous melting systems and is capable of virtually continuous, high-speed and high-resolution chemical analysis of long ice cores. The new technique and operating procedures have been tested and validated with the analysis of over 100 m of ice cores from Antarctica. The current CFA-IC system provides an all-major-ion analysis speed of up to 8 m a day at a depth resolution of approximately 2 cm.

Antarctic Regions↗

Computerized apparatus for measuring dynamic flavor release from liquid food matrices.

A fully computer-controlled apparatus was designed. It combines a glass reactor with a temperature-controlled hood, in which headspace volatiles are captured. Flavored liquids can be introduced into the reactor and exposed to conditions of temperature, air flow, shear rate, and saliva flow as they occur in the mouth. As the reactor is completely filled before measurements are started, creation of headspace just before sampling start prevents untimely flavor release resulting in real time data. In the first 30 s of flavor release the concentrations of the volatiles can be measured up to four times by on-line sampling of the dynamic headspace, followed by off-line trapping of the samples on corresponding Tenax traps and analysis using GC-TDS-FID. Flavor compounds from different chemical classes were dissolved in water to achieve concentrations typically present in food (micrograms to milligrams per liter). Most of the compounds showed constant release rates, and the summed quantities of each volatile of three 10 s time intervals correlated linearly with time. The entire method of measurement including sample preparation, release, sampling, trapping, thermodesorption, and GC analysis showed good sensitivity [nanograms (10 s)(-1)] and reproducibility (mean coefficient of variation = 7.2%).

Chromatography, Gas↗

Ultrastructural organization of yeast chromatin.

The ultrastructural organization of yeast chromatin was examined in Miller spread preparations of samples prepared from spheroplasts or isolated nuclei of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Micrographs from preparations dispersed in 1 mM Tris (pH 7.2) illustrate that the basic chromatin fiber in yeast exists in two ultrastructurally distinct conformations. The majority (up to 95%) of the chromatin displays a beaded nucleosomal organization, although adjacent nucleosomes are separated by internucleosomal linkers of variable lengths. Ribonucleoprotein (RNP) fibrils are only occasionally associated with chromatin displaying the conformation. The remaining 5-10% of the chromatin appears to be devoid of discrete nucleosomes and has a smooth contour with a fiber diameter of 30-40 A. Transcriptional units, including putative ribosomal precursor RNA genes, defined by the presence of nascent RNP fibrils are restricted to chromatin displaying this smooth morphology. Chromatin released from nuclei in the presence of 5 mM Mg++ displays higher-order chromatin fibers, 200-300 A in diameter, these fibers appear to be arranged in a manner than reflects the two forms of the basic chromatin fiber.

Cell Nucleus↗