TiO2 Simultaneous Enrichment, On-Line Deglycosylation, and Sequential Analysis of Glyco- and Phosphopeptides

Reversible protein glycosylation and phosphorylation tightly modulate important cellular processes and are closely involved in pathological processes in a crosstalk dependent manner. Because of their significance and low abundances of glyco- and phosphopeptides, several strategies have been developed to simultaneously enrich and co-elute glyco- and phosphopeptides. However, the co-existence of deglycosylated peptides and phosphopeptides aggravates the mass spectrometry analysis. Herein we developed a novel strategy to analyze glyco- and phosphopeptides based on simultaneous enrichment with TiO2, on-line deglycosylation and collection of deglycosylated peptides, and subsequent elution of phosphopeptides. To optimize on-line deglycosylation conditions, the solution pH, buffer types and concentrations, and deglycosylation time were investigated. The application of this novel strategy to 100 μg mouse brain resulted in 355 glycopeptides and 1,975 phosphopeptides, which were 2.5 and 1.4 folds of those enriched with the reported method. This study will expand the application of TiO2 and may shed light on simultaneously monitoring protein multiple post-translational modifications.

Short communication: Evaluation of charged membrane filters and buffers for concentration and recovery of infectious salmon anaemia virus in seawater

Infectious salmon anaemia virus (ISAV) is the cause of an important waterborne disease of farmed Atlantic salmon. Detection of virus in water samples may constitute an alternative method to sacrificing fish for surveillance of fish populations for the presence of ISA-virus. We aimed to evaluate different membrane filters and buffers for concentration and recovery of ISAV in seawater, prior to molecular detection. One litre each of artificial and natural seawater was spiked with ISAV, followed by concentration with different filters and subsequent elution with different buffers. The negatively charged MF hydrophilic membrane filter, combined with NucliSENS® lysis buffer, presented the highest ISAV recovery percentages with 12.5 ± 1.3% by RT-qPCR and 31.7 ± 10.7% by RT-ddPCR. For the positively charged 1 MDS Zeta Plus® Virosorb® membrane filter, combined with NucliSENS® lysis buffer, the ISAV recovery percentages were 3.4 ± 0.1% by RT-qPCR and 10.8 ± 14.2% by RT-ddPCR. The limits of quantification (LOQ) were estimated to be 2.2 x 103 ISAV copies/L of natural seawater for both RT-qPCR and RT-ddPCR. The ISAV concentration method was more efficient in natural seawater.

Desorption of Mercury Complex from Fe-Modified Montmorillonite Adsorbent Membrane

With the use of nanotechnology, clay minerals, specifically montmorillonites, have been reengineered to be used in environmental remediation, especially in the treatment of mining wastewater containing hazardous heavy metal ions. The objective of this study is to assess the practicality of using iron-modified montmorillonite (Fe-MMT) nanomembranes in the removal of mercury using the adsorption process. The nanomembranes, which were synthesized via electrospinning, were subjected to mercury cyanide solutions during the batch adsorption set ups to determine the adsorption efficiency. During the subsequent elution tests, three factors– eluent type (CH3COOH and C6H807), eluent concentration (0.01 M and 0.05 M) and contact time (3 and 5 hours) – were tested. SEM images of the mats were acquired to study the structure of the adsorbent. HD XRF analysis was done to identify the ions present in the membrane, as well as the initial Hg concentrations, amount of remaining Hg in the wastewater after batch adsorption and amount of desorbed metal. Results showed that using the Fe-MMT nanomembrane as adsorbent material resulted to 61.74% removal of Hg in the mercury cyanide solutions with initial concentrations of 13.87 to 38.9 mg L-1. Acetic acid exhibited better desorption results, with the highest efficiency of 31.36% (0.01 M, 5 h) compared to citric acid’s 7.40% (0.05M, 3 h).

Rhenium(VII) Compounds as Inorganic Precursors for the Synthesis of Organic Reaction Catalysts

Rhenium is an element that exhibits a broad range of oxidation states. Synthesis paths of selected rhenium compounds in its seventh oxidation state, which are common precursors for organic reaction catalysts, were presented in this paper. Production technologies for copper perrhenate, aluminum perrhenate as well as the ammonia complex of cobalt perrhenate, are thoroughly described. An ion exchange method, based on Al or Cu metal ion sorption and subsequent elution by aqueous perrhenic acid solutions, was used to obtain perrhenates. The produced solutions were neutralized to afford the targeted aluminum perrhenate and copper perrhenate products in high purity. The developed technologies allow one to manage the wastes from the production of these perrhenates as most streams were recycled. Hexaamminecobalt(III) perrhenate was produced by a newly developed method enabling us to produce a high purity compound in a reaction of spent hexaamminecobalt(III) chloride solution with a perrhenic acid. All prepared compounds are the basis for precursor preparation in organic catalysis.

Technology to Produce High-Purity Anhydrous Rubidium Perrhenate on an Industrial Scale

Technology used to produce high purity anhydrous rubidium perrhenate on an industrial scale from high purity perrhenic acid and rubidium nitrate by the ion-exchange method is described in this paper. This material is dedicated to catalyst preparation, therefore, strict purity requirements have to be fulfilled. These are satisfied by combining rubidium ion sorption on an ion exchange column and the subsequent elution of the high purity perrhenic acid solution, followed by crystallization, evaporation, purification, and drying. In the current study, rubidium and rhenium contents were found to be 22.5 wt.% and 55.4 wt.%, respectively, while contaminations were as follows: <2 ppm As, <2 ppm Bi, <5 ppm Ca, <5 ppm Cu, <3 ppm Fe, <10 ppm K, <3 ppm Mg, <5 ppm Mo, <2 ppm Na, <5 ppm Pb, and <3 ppm Zn.

2,6-Diamino-1-N-methylpyrimidine as new fluorescent probe for palladium(II) determination using hyphenated technique

The selective and sensitive hyphenated technique for Pd(II) fluorescence and spectrophotometric determination was proposed. The procedure was based on preliminary solid-phase extraction of [PdCl4]2− onto silica modified with quaternary ammonium salts, with the subsequent elution from the surface by 2,6-diamino-1- N-methylpyrimidine solution and measurement of the fluorescence intensity. The luminescence enhancement effect of 2,6-diamino-1- N-methylpyrimidine in the presence of Pd(II) due to the complex formation was applied to the development of sorption-spectroscopic techniques for detecting trace amounts of palladium in solution.

Liquid Chromatographic Determination of Fosthiazate Residues in Environmental Samples and Application of the Method to a Fosthiazate Field Dissipation Study

A method was developed and validated for the determination of residues of the organophosphorus nematicide fosthiazate in soil and water by using reversed-phase liquid chromatography with UV detection. Good recoveries (&gt;85%) of fosthiazate residues were obtained from water samples (drinking water, groundwater, and liquid chromatography water) after passage of 0.5–2 L water through solid-phase extraction (SPE) C-18 cartridges and subsequent elution with ethyl acetate. Residues in soil were extracted with methanol–water (75 + 25, v/v) on a wrist-action shaker, and the extract was cleaned up on C-18 SPE cartridges before analysis. The method was validated by analysis of a range of soils with different physicochemical characteristics; recoveries exceeded 87% at fortification levels ranging from 0.02 to 5.0 mg/kg. The precision values obtained for the method, expressed as repeatability and reproducibility, were satisfactory (&lt;11%). Fosthiazate detection limits were 0.025 μg/L and 0.005 mg/kg for water and soil samples, respectively. The decline in the levels of fosthiazate residues in soil was measured after application of fosthiazate to protected tomato cultivation. The dissipation of fosthiazate residues followed first-order kinetics with a calculated half-life of 21 days.

Removal of ammonium from human urine through ion exchange with clinoptilolite and its recovery for further reuse

Ammonium, from separately collected human urine, had been removed through transfer onto the ammonium selective natural zeolite, clinoptilolite, through ion exchange. In the subsequent treatment steps of washing with tap water, ammonium removed from urine was eluted from the surface of the clinoptilolite to be recovered for further reuse. Different quantities of clinoptilolite were used for a survey of the capacity of the zeolite for the process and to identify removal efficiencies based on initial ammonium loads. The highest surface concentration attained under experimental conditions employed was 15.44 mg ammonium per gram of clinoptilolite for an initial concentration of 110 mg ammonia per litre, and the highest removal was 98%, obtained for a loading of 1 mg ammonium per gram clinoptilolite. In the subsequent elution process, better removals were observed as pH was increased and the highest removal was attained at pH 13. The recovery was calculated as 9.73 mg ammonium per gram of clinoptilolite, corresponding to an efficiency of 63% only through washing with tap water. The results have given positive indications for the possibility of using ion exchange with clinoptilolite for the removal of ammonium from human urine and an incentive for improving methods of elution for its recovery for further reuse.

Immunoaffinity Column as Sample Cleanup Method for Determination of the Beta-Adrenergic Agonist Ractopamine and Its Metabolites

A monoclonal antibody-based immunoaffinity column (RAC-IAC) was developed as a cleanup method for the determination of ractopamine and ractopamine glucuronides. [14C]Ractopamine (5 μg) and [14C]ractopamine glucuronides (5 μg) were fortified into 10 mL cattle urine, and loaded onto an RAC-IAC (5 mg IgG/mL) column. The column was washed and the bound analytes were eluted. In the initial loading and washing, 22% of the radioactivity was washed off and the subsequent elution step recovered 78%. A blank column prepared from nonspecific IgG retained &lt;10% of the radioactivity. The RAC-IACs were damaged by high methanol concentrations, preventing reuse. Elution of the analytes with 50mM glycine buffer, pH 2.8, prevented damage, and the columns could be reused at least 20 times with no change in performance. They were stored &gt;3 months in phosphate- buffered saline with 0.02% sodium azide at 4°C. The method was used with fortified cattle muscle, liver, and kidney samples with recoveries of 82.1 ± 7.6, 87.8 ± 1.9, and 92.5 ± 0.4%, respectively (n = 3). Similar studies with sheep muscle, liver, and kidney samples gave recoveries of 91.8 ± 0.2, 91.7 ± 0.3, and 92.3 ± 0.3, respectively ( n = 3). Liver and kidney samples were diluted to prevent column plugging, but all of the eluants were suitable for liquid chromatography analysis. This IAC is a selective, efficient, and economical cleanup method in a variety of matrixes for ractopamine determination.

Uptake and intracellular activity of NM394, a new quinolone, in human polymorphonuclear leukocytes.

The uptake of NM394, a new quinolone, by and its subsequent elution from human polymorphonuclear leukocytes were studied and compared with those of ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin. The kinetics of the uptake of NM394 was similar to that of ciprofloxacin. The maximum intracellular-to-extracellular concentration ratio was 12.3, compared with 8.6 for ciprofloxacin and 4.9 for ofloxacin at the extracellular concentration of 20 micrograms/ml. The elution of NM394 from human polymorphonuclear leukocytes occurs relatively slowly; 5 min after the removal of extracellular NM394, nearly 100% still remained in polymorphonuclear leukocytes, compared with ofloxacin, which was so rapidly eluted that only 12% remained. The uptake of NM394 was significantly decreased at 4 degrees C and by the presence of NaCN but was not affected by the presence of L-glycine, L-leucine, L-serine, adenosine, or NaF. NM394 showed intracellular activity at a concentration of 0.1 microgram/ml that significantly reduced the number of phagocytosed Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells with 2 h of incubation. These results suggest that uptake of NM394 by human polymorphonuclear leukocytes occurs via an active transport system differing from that of ofloxacin, whose uptake is affected by the presence of L-glycine and L-leucine, and that once accumulated, NM394 remains intracellularly active and participates in protection against bacterial infection.