A novel electroanalytical approach to the measurement of B vitamins in food supplements based on screen-printed carbon sensors

© 2017 Elsevier B.V. This paper describes the development of a novel electrochemical assay for the measurement of water-soluble vitamins in food and pharmaceutical products. The optimum conditions for the determination of vitamin B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin) and B6 (pyridoxine) in phosphate buffer were established using cyclic voltammetry in conjunction with screen printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs). The optimum current response for all three vitamins was achieved in 0.1 M phosphate buffer pH 11 using an initial potential of −1.0 V. Using square wave voltammetry, the linear ranges for thiamine, riboflavin, and pyridoxine were found to be: 15–110 µg/ml, 0.1–20 µg/ml, and 2–80 µg/ml respectively. The application of the method to a commercial food product yielded a recovery of 95.78% for riboflavin, with a coefficient of variation (CV) of 3.38% (n = 5). The method was also applied to a multi-vitamin supplement for the simultaneous determination of thiamine, riboflavin and pyridoxine. In both cases only simple dilution with buffer followed by centrifugation was required prior to analysis. The resulting square wave voltammetric signals were completely resolved with Ep values of −0.7 V, +0.2 V, and +0.6 V respectively. The recoveries determined for the vitamin B complex in a commercial supplement product were found to be 110%, 114%, and 112% respectively (CV = 7.14%, 6.28%. 5.66% respectively, n = 5)

An electrocatalytic screen-printed amperometric sensor for the selective measurement of thiamine (Vitamin B1) in food supplements

An electrocatalytic screen-printed sensor has been investigated for the measurement of the biologically important biomolecule vitamin B1 (thiamine) for the first time in food supplements. Under basic conditions, the vitamin was converted to its electrochemically active thiolate anion species. It was shown that an electrocatalytic oxidation reaction occurred with the screen-printed carbon electrode containing the mediator cobalt phthalocyanine (CoPC-SPCE). This had the advantage of producing an analytical response current at an operating potential of 0 V vs. Ag/AgCl compared to +0.34 V obtained with plain SPCEs. This resulted in improved selectivity and limit of detection. Detailed studies on the underlying mechanism occurring with the sensor are reported in this paper. A linear response was obtained between 0.1 and 20 µg mL −1 , which was suitable for the quantification of the vitamin in two commercial products containing vitamin B1. The mean recovery for a multivitamin tablet with a declared content of 5 mg was 101% (coefficient of variation (CV) of 9.6%). A multivitamin drink, which had a much lower concentration of vitamin B1 (0.22 mg/100 mL), gave a mean recovery of 93.3% (CV 7.2%). These results indicate that our sensor holds promise for quality control of food supplements and other food types

Screen-printed carbon based biosensors and their applications in agri-food safety

This review focuses on the ways in which screen-printed carbon electrodes have been tailored with different biorecognition elements, including enzymes, antibodies, and aptamers, often with other modifiers, such as mediators and nanoparticles, to produce electrochemical biosensors for a variety of analytes of importance in agri-food safety. Emphasis is placed on the strategies of biosensor fabrication and the performance characteristics of the devices. As well as biosensors for a range of analytes in different agri-food matrices, we have also included reports on novel devices that have potential in agri-food safety but as yet have not been applied in this area

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Ramucirumab plus docetaxel versus placebo plus docetaxel in patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma after platinum-based therapy (RANGE): a randomised, double-blind, phase 3 trial

Few treatments with a distinct mechanism of action are available for patients with platinum-refractory advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma. We assessed the efficacy and safety of treatment with docetaxel plus either ramucirumab-a human IgG1 VEGFR-2 antagonist-or placebo in this patient population

The redox behaviour of diazepam (Valium®) using a disposable screen-printed sensor and its determination in drinks using a novel adsorptive stripping voltammetric assay

In this study we investigated the possibility of applying disposable electrochemical screen-printed carbon sensors for the rapid identification and quantitative determination of diazepam in beverages. This was achieved utilising a previously unreported oxidation peak. The origin of this peak was investigated further by cyclic voltammetry and gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy. At pH 6 the voltammetric behaviour of this oxidation process was found to involve adsorption of the drug allowing for the development of an adsorptive stripping voltammetric assay. Experimental conditions were then optimised for the determination of diazepam in a beverage sample using a medium exchange technique. It was shown that no elaborate extraction procedures were required as the calibration plots obtained in the absence and presence of the beverage were very similar. © 2013 Elsevier B.V

Development of an anodic stripping voltammetric assay, using a disposable mercury-free screen-printed carbon electrode, for the determination of zinc in human sweat

This paper reports on the development of a novel electrochemical assay for Zn2+ in human sweat, which involves the use of disposable screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs). Initially, SPCEs were used in conjunction with cyclic voltammetry to study the redox characteristics of Zn2+ in a selection of supporting electrolytes. The best defined cathodic and anodic peaks were obtained with 0.1 M NaCl/0.1 M acetate buffer pH 6.0. The anodic peak was sharp and symmetrical which is typical for the oxidation of a thin metal film on the electrode surface. This behaviour was exploited in the development of a differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetric (DPASV) assay for zinc. It was shown that a deposition potential of -1.6 V versus Ag/AgCl and deposition time of 60 s with stirring (10 s equilibration) produced a well-defined stripping peak with Epa = -1.2 V versus Ag/AgCl. Using these conditions, the calibration plot was linear over the range 1 × 10-8 to 5 × 10-6 M Zn2+. The precision was examined by carrying out six replicate measurements at a concentration of 2 × 10-6 M; the coefficient of variation was calculated to be 5.6%. The method was applied to the determination of the analyte in sweat from 10 human volunteers. The concentrations were between 0.39 and 1.56 μg/mL, which agrees well with previously reported values. This simple, low-cost sensitive assay should have application in biomedical studies and for stress and fatigue in sports studies. © 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Development of a novel electrochemical immuno-assay using a screen printed electrode for the determination of secretory immunoglobulin A in human sweat

This paper reports on the steps involved in the development of a novel electrochemical immunoassay for secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) determinations in human sweat. This novel immunoassay involves an initial step whereby sweat sIgA is adsorbed onto a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane (sweat patch). Following a wash step, a solution containing bovine serum albumin (BSA) is used to block any sites at which non-specific binding might occur. After a second wash step, the PVDF sweat patch is transferred to a second tube to which is added diluent and anti-sIgA antibody conjugated to horseradish peroxidase (HRP). Following an incubation step, an aliquot of supernatant containing unbound antibody is transferred to a well in a 96 well plate format which had been previously coated with sIgA. After a second incubation step and wash step, 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) is added to the same well and left to undergo enzymatic oxidation. Finally a screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE) is inserted into the well and any oxidised TMB is detected by chronoamperometry using an applied potential of +50 mV. The resulting reduction current is then referred to a calibration plot to deduce the unknown sIgA concentration. The optimisation of the steps involved in this assay is described in detail. Some preliminary data is presented on sweat sIgA levels collected from human volunteers who had undergone a controlled exercise regime on a bicycle (Ergociser). To our knowledge this is the first report where a sweat patch and a SPCE have been successfully incorporated into an immunoassay for sIgA. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved