Stable Luminescent Poly(Allylaminehydrochloride)-Templated Copper Nanoclusters for Selectively Turn-Off Sensing of Deferasirox in β-Thalassemia Plasma

Highly stable and facile one-pot copper nanoclusters (Cu NCs) coated with poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) have been synthesized for selectively sensing deferasirox (DFX) in β-thalassemia plasma. DFX is an important drug used for treating iron overloading in β-thalassemia, but needs to be monitored due to certain toxicity. In this study, the PAH-Cu NCs showed highly stable fluorescence with emission wavelengths at 450 nm. The DFX specifically interacted with the copper nanocluster to turn off the fluorescence of the PAH-Cu NCs, and could be selectively quantified through the fluorescence quenching effect. The linear range of DFX in plasma analyzed by PAH-Cu NCs was 1.0–100.0 µg/mL (r = 0.985). The relative standard deviation (RSD) and relative error (RE) were lower than 6.51% and 7.57%, respectively, showing excellent reproducibility of PAH-Cu NCs for sensing DFX in plasma. This method was also successfully applied for an analysis of three clinical plasma samples from β-thalassemia patients taking DFX. The data presented high similarity with that obtained through a capillary electrophoresis method. According to the results, the PAH-Cu NCs could be used as a tool for clinically sensing DFX in human plasma for clinical surveys.

Identification of Enterococcus faecalis in Different Clonal Lineages with the Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis Method in Imam Khomeini Hospital, Ilam, Iran

Background: Due to the importance of identifying the source of infectious agents, different typing methods have been developed, among which the pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) method is known as the gold standard for bacteria. Also, Enterococcus faecalis is classified as a nosocomial infection. Objectives: The current study aimed to identify the source of E. faecalis by the PFGE method. Methods: Bacteria were collected from all cases of urinary tract infections. Then, the identification process was performed. All isolates were evaluated for vancomycin resistance, and then PFGE was carried out. Results: The results of disk diffusion showed that 54% of the isolates showed resistance to vancomycin. Also, 4% of the isolates were intermediate, and 42% showed sensitivity to vancomycin. Afterwards, the PCR of the VanA gene was performed to confirm the results of disk diffusion. Thus, 48 out of 54 (88.8%) isolates had the VanA gene, and none of the four intermediate isolates had the VanA gene. Our results demonstrated that 54 isolates were vancomycin-resistant, and 50 different pulsotypes groups were identified. Conclusions: Our findings showed the isolates of E. faecalis were from different clonal lineages.

Study on development of an analytical procedure to quantify glyphosate by capillary electrophoresis method and its application for beverage

Nowadays, the issue of fresh food, drinks, and residue analysis of toxic compounds in food and drinks is increasingly interested in society. In this study, an analytical procedure for quantitative analysis of the glyphosate residue in beverages such as tea infusion and beer was developed based on the capillary electrophoresis method with capacitively-coupled contactless conductivity detector combined with sample preparation using solid phase extraction technique. The analytical conditions optimised for capillary electrophoresis equipment included: histidine/acetic acid background electrolyte solution with histidine concentration of 1 mM and pH value was adjusted to 2.75 by acetic acid; a separation voltage was 20 kV was applied and a high voltage injection at 20 kV for 10 seconds was chosen. The optimised analytical procedure has resulted in a low detection limit of glyphosate (0.42 μg/l), the repeatability and reproducibility expressed by the relative standard deviation of the peak area and migration time were both less than 10%, a wide linear range, and the obtained recovery efficiency of glyphosate on different drinks were achieved to values ranging from 88.7 to 96.3%.

Optimisation of analytical conditions for simultaneous determination of phenol and chlorophenols by capillary electrophoresis with indirect laser-induced fluorescence detection

This work presented a capillary electrophoresis method with indirect laser-induced fluorescence detection for the simultaneous determination of phenol and four chlorophenol derivatives. The separation was obtained within 20 minutes with a background electrolyte composed of 5 mM borax and 1 mM fluorescein (pH=9.75), 17 kV of applied voltage, and 120 s of hydrostatic injection. At the optimal conditions, the limit of detections for phenolic compounds was in the range of 0.08-0.23 mg/l, and the RSD data of repeatability and reproducibility were less than 8.0% for both migration times and peak areas. This developed method was applied to analyse concentrations of phenolic compounds in surface water and wastewater samples, with the recoveries ranging from 59.4 to 102.5%.

Keragaman genotipik entok (Cairina moschata) berdasarkan polimorfisme protein darah

<p class="MDPI17abstract"><strong>Objective: </strong>The aim of this study was to identified genetic diversity of muscovy duck in Central Java through blood protein polymorphisms by using electrophoresis method.</p><p class="MDPI17abstract"><strong>Methods: </strong>Blood sample was collected from a total of 60 muscovy ducks from the districts of Demak, Magelang and Pekalongan, 20 samples each. The Electrophoresis Polyacrylamide Gel of Electrophoresis–Thin Layer Electrophoresis (PAGE-TLE) was used in this study. Parameters observed were protein of albumin (Alb), ceruloplasmin (Cp), transferrin (Tf) and amylase-I (Am-I). Gene frequency, heterozygosity (Ho) and genetic distance were analyzed by using DISPAN program.<strong></strong></p><p class="MDPI17abstract"><strong>Results</strong><strong>: </strong>The results showed that the Alb, Cp, Tf and Am-I of muscovy duck showing polymorphic characters. Gene frequency of Alb^B (0.61) was higher compared to Alb^A (0.39). Gene frequency of Cp^A (0.62) was higher than the Cp^B (0.38). Furthermore, gene frequency of Tf^A and Tf^B were 0.32 and 0.68, respectively as well as gene frequency of Am-I^A (0.82) was higher than Am-I^B (0.18). Muscovy duck population of Demak showed higher Ho value for Alb and Am-I, whereas Magelang showed higher value for Cp and Tf. Population of muscovy duck of Demak showed closer genetic distance to Pekalongan than Magelang.<strong></strong></p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The protein blood locus of three population of muscovy duck in Central Jawa showed polymorphic characters.

Development of a Chiral Capillary Electrophoresis Method for the Enantioseparation of Verapamil Using Cyclodextrins as Chiral Selectors and Experimental Design Optimization

Chirality is a property of asymmetry which determines the pharmacokinetic and pharmacological profiles of optically active pharmaceuticals. Verapamil (VER), a calcium channel blocker phenylalkylamine derivative used in the treatment of cardio-vascular diseases, is a chiral compound, marketed as a racemate, although differences between the pharmacokinetic and pharmacological attributes of the enantiomers have been reported. The aim of our study was to develop a new chiral separation method for VER enantiomers by capillary electrophoresis (CE) using cyclodextrins (CDs) as chiral selectors (CSs). After an initial screening, using different native and derivatized CDs, at four pH levels, heptakis 2,3,6-tri-O-methyl-β-CD (TM-β-CD), a neutral derivatized CD, was identified as the optimum CS. For method optimization, a preliminary univariate approach was applied to characterize the influence of analytical parameters on the separation followed by a Box–Behnken experimental design to establish the optimal separation conditions. Chiral separation of enantiomers was achieved with a resolution of 1.58 in approximately 4 min; the migration order was R-VER followed by S-VER. The method analytical performance was evaluated in terms of precision, linearity, accuracy, and robustness (applying a Plackett–Burnam experimental design). The developed method was applied for the determination of VER enantiomers in pharmaceuticals. Finally, a computer modelling of VER–CD complexes was used to describe host–guest chiral recognition.