Determination of silver(I) by flame atomic absorption spectrometry after separation/preconcentration using modified magnetite nanoparticles

AbstractA new, simple, fast and reliable method has been developed for the separation/preconcentration of trace amounts of silver ions using 2-mercaptobenzothiazole/sodium dodecyl sulfate immobilized on alumina-coated magnetite nanoparticles (MBT/SDS-ACMNPs) and their determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). Optimal experimental conditions, including pH, sample volume, eluent concentration and volume, and co-existing ions, have been studied and established. Under optimal experimental conditions, the enrichment factor, detection limit, linear range and relative standard deviation (RSD) of Ag(I) ions were 250 (for 500 mL of sample solution), 0.56 ng mL−1, 2.0–100.0 ng mL−1 and 3.1% (for 5.0 μg mL−1, n=10), respectively. The presented procedure was successfully applied for determination of silver content in the different samples of water

Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes Modified Carbon Paste Electrode for Determination of Copper(II) by Potentiometric and Impedimetric Methods

Abstract A chemically modified carbon paste electrode with multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) was prepared and used as a sensor for Cu 2+ ion. The unique chemical and physical properties of CNT have paved the way to new and improved sensing devices. A central composite chemometrics design was applied for multivariate optimization of the effects of three significant parameters (Graphite powder (X 1 ), MWCNT (X 2 ) and Ionophre (X 3 )) influencing the response of the electrode. In the optimized conditions, the electrode exhibits a Nernstian slope of 30.1 mV/decade in a linear range between 1.0×10 -6 to1.0×10 -1 M over a wide pH range (2.0-6.5). Importantly, the effect of the MWCNT on the performance of electrode was investigated by impedance technique, that showed the MWCNT helps the transduction of the signal in carbon paste electrode and the charged transfer resistance (R ct ) was reduced. The impedimetric results indicated that the linear concentrations range was 1.0×10 −7 to 1.0×10 −1 M and in comparison with potentiometry, the pH range increased to 2.0−7.5. JNS All rights reserve

[Bis(2-hydroxyl imino)1-phenyl, 2-(2-qunolile)1-ethanona]Aluminium(III) Complex as Carrier for a Salicylate-Sensitive Electrode

A salicylate-selective electrode based on the complex [bis(2-hydroxyl imino)1-phenyl,2-(2- qunolile)1-ethanona]Aluminium(III) as the membrane carrier was developed. The electrode exhibited a good Nernstian slope of –59.1 ± 0.4 mV / decade (mean value ± standard deviation, n = 5) and a linear range of 1.0 × 10–6– 1.0 × 10–1 mol L–1 for salicylate. The limit of detection was 5.0 × 10–7 mol L–1. The electrode had a fast response time of 15 s and could be used for more than three months. The selectivity coefficients were determined by the fixed interference method (FIM) and could be used in the pH range of 2.0–7.8. It was employed as an indicator electrode for direct the determination of salicylate in pharmaceutical samples

Nanostructured Modified Electrode for Electrocatalytic Determination of Epinephrine in the Presence of Acetaminophen

Abstract In this paper, a nanostructured modified electrode was fabricated by incorporating of 2,2′-[1,9-nonanediylbis(nitriloethylidyne)]-bishydroquinone (NNH) as a newly synthesized modifier and TiO 2 nanoparticles to the carbon paste (MTCPE) and then was used for the electroanalysis of epinephrine (EP). The electrochemical studies were carried out by using cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) techniques. It has been found that the oxidation of EP at the surface of this electrode occurs at a potential about 235 mV less positive than that of an unmodified carbon paste electrode. A dynamic range of 1.0-2000.0 µM, with a detection limit of 0.37 µM for EP, was obtained using DPV. Also, this modified electrode exhibits well separated oxidation peaks for EP and acetaminophen (AC) using DPV. JNS All rights reserve

The association between real-life markers of phone use and cognitive performance, health-related quality of life and sleep

INTRODUCTION: The real-life short-term implications of electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) on cognitive performance and health-related quality of life have not been well studied. The SPUTNIC study (Study Panel on Upcoming Technologies to study Non-Ionizing radiation and Cognition) aimed to investigate possible correlations between mobile phone radiation and human health, including cognition, health-related quality of life and sleep. METHODS: Adult participants tracked various daily markers of RF-EMF exposures (cordless calls, mobile calls, and mobile screen time 4 h prior to each assessment) as well as three health outcomes over ten study days: 1) cognitive performance, 2) health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and 3) sleep duration and quality. Cognitive performance was measured through six "game-like" tests, assessing verbal and visuo-spatial performance repeatedly. HRQoL was assessed as fatigue, mood and stress on a Likert-scale (1-10). Sleep duration and efficiency was measured using activity trackers. We fitted mixed models with random intercepts per participant on cognitive, HRQoL and sleep scores. Possible time-varying confounders were assessed at daily intervals by questionnaire and used for model adjustment. RESULTS: A total of 121 participants ultimately took part in the SPUTNIC study, including 63 from Besancon and 58 from Basel. Self-reported wireless phone use and screen time were sporadically associated with visuo-spatial and verbal cognitive performance, compatible with chance findings. We found a small but robust significant increase in stress 0.03 (0.00-0.06; on a 1-10 Likert-scale) in relation to a 10-min increase in mobile phone screen time. Sleep duration and quality were not associated with either cordless or mobile phone calls, or with screen time. DISCUSSION: The study did not find associations between short-term RF-EMF markers and cognitive performance, HRQoL, or sleep duration and quality. The most consistent finding was increased stress in relation to more screen time, but no association with cordless or mobile phone call time

Metabolic profiling of pre-gestational and gestational diabetes mellitus identifies novel predictors of pre-term delivery.

Pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are at increased risks of pre-term labor, hypertension and preeclampsia. In this study, metabolic profiling of blood samples collected from GDM, T2DM and control pregnant women was undertaken to identify potential diagnostic biomarkers in GDM/T2DM and compared to pregnancy outcome. Sixty-seven pregnant women (21 controls, 32 GDM, 14 T2DM) in their second trimester underwent targeted metabolomics of plasma samples using tandem mass spectrometry with the Biocrates MxP Quant 500 Kit. Linear regression models were used to identify the metabolic signature of GDM and T2DM, followed by generalized linear model (GLMNET) and Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis to determine best predictors of GDM, T2DM and pre-term labor. The gestational age at delivery was 2 weeks earlier in T2DM compared to GDM and controls and correlated negatively with maternal HbA1C and systolic blood pressure and positively with serum albumin. Linear regression models revealed elevated glutamate and branched chain amino acids in GDM + T2DM group compared to controls. Regression models also revealed association of lower levels of triacylglycerols and diacylglycerols containing oleic and linoleic fatty acids with pre-term delivery. A generalized linear model ROC analyses revealed that that glutamate is the best predictors of GDM compared to controls (area under curve; AUC = 0.81). The model also revealed that phosphatidylcholine diacyl C40:2, arachidonic acid, glycochenodeoxycholic acid, and phosphatidylcholine acyl-alkyl C34:3 are the best predictors of GDM + T2DM compared to controls (AUC = 0.90). The model also revealed that the triacylglycerols C17:2/36:4 and C18:1/34:1 are the best predictors of pre-term delivery (≤ 37 weeks) (AUC = 0.84). This study highlights the metabolite alterations in women in their second trimester with diabetes mellitus and identifies predictive indicators of pre-term delivery. Future studies to confirm these associations in other cohorts and investigate their functional relevance and potential utilization for targeted therapies are warranted.This research was sponsored by QNRF, Grant no. NPRP10-1205-160010 (NAM)

Identification of a Chemical That Inhibits the Mycobacterial UvrABC Complex in Nucleotide Excision Repair†

ABSTRACT: Bacterial DNA can be damaged by reactive nitrogen and oxygen intermediates (RNI and ROI) generated by host immunity, as well as by antibiotics that trigger bacterial production of ROI. Thus a pathogen’s ability to repair its DNA may be important for persistent infection. A prominent role for nucleotide excision repair (NER) in disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) was suggested by attenuation of uvrB-deficient Mtb in mice. However, it was unknown if Mtb’s Uvr proteins could execute NER. Here we report that recombinant UvrA, UvrB, and UvrC from Mtb collectively bound and cleaved plasmid DNA exposed to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation or peroxynitrite. We used the DNA incision assay to test the mechanism of action of compounds identified in a high-throughput screen for their ability to delay recovery of M. smegmatis from UV irradiation. 2-(5-Amino-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-ylbenzo[f]chromen-3-one) (ATBC) but not several closely related compounds inhibited cleavage of damaged DNA byUvrA, UvrB, and UvrC without intercalating in DNA and impaired recovery ofM. smegmatis fromUV irradiation. ATBC di

Modern approaches to production of safe and effective genetically modified rabies vaccines for animals

Rabies is a dangerous zoonoticdisease that affects the central nervous system, causes encephalomyelitis and paralyses and Is almost invariably fatal. The disease causes significant economic losses associated with the death of animals, outbreak consequences, strict restrictions on domestic and international trade in livestock products, preventive and quarantine measures, laboratory tests. The World Organization for Animal Health recommends vaccination to control rabies. Taking into account that there is a lack of affordable high-quality vaccines to globally prevent and control the disease, stable, attenuated production strains of rabies virus with broad cross-activity against various variants of the pathogen shall be considered as ideal candidates to produce high-quality, safe and effective vaccines. Currently, someapproachesareappliedtoreducethevirusvirulenceandimprovesafetyof rabies vaccines. Reverse genetics is very popular now. It provides new approaches to study functions of a specific gene by analyzing phenotypic effects after direct manipulations with nucleotide sequences. The methods of reverse genetics have revolutionized molecular biology and have become apowerful tool to study genetics of RNA viruses. These methods are widely used to study rabies virus. The use of reverse genetics has made it possible to modify rabies virus production strains for manufacture of modern genetically modified rabies vaccines that induce a persistent and long-term immunity. The review briefly covers general approaches to development of viral vectors with the purpose to create genetically modified rabies vaccines

Flow cytometry sorting of cells infected with African swine fever virus

The African swine fever panzootic  is continuing  to spread,  and the number  of affected countries and material losses are increasing. In particular, India, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, Greece and Bhutan joined the list of ASF infected countries in 2020–2021. The disease control is hindered  by the lack of commercially available and effective vaccines, which, in its turn, is attributable  to the insufficient knowledge of ASF pathogenesis  and immune defense against the disease. The use of attenuated virus variants enables a thorough  investigation of the factors influencing the virulence of African swine fever virus and the immune  response  to it. This involves the use of naturally attenuated virus variants, as well as of the variants attenuated by a long-term passaging of the virus in cell cultures. However, virulence heterogeneity characteristic of the ASF virus population, necessitates  the additional selection of infected cells for the virus cloning. Conventional culture-based techniques for virus particle cloning are rather time- and labour-consuming;  it is therefore appropriate  to use flow cytometry cell sorting for the selection and cloning of virus infected cells with a view of selecting  homologous  virus lineages.  The paper  presents  the results of sorting  of African green  monkey kidney cells (CV-1) and porcine bone marrow cells infected with African swine fever virus; the cells were sorted into the 96-well culture plates using a MoFlo  Astrios   EQ cell sorter in order to isolate a population of the virus originating from one infected cell. After the single cell sorting of the infected cell cultures into the 96-well plates, ASF positive cell detection  rates in the plate wells were 30% for porcine bone marrow cells and 20% for CV-1