Voltammetric Determination of a Benzimidazole Anthelmintic Mixture at a Poly(3-methylthiophene)-modified Glassy Carbon Electrode

The voltammetric determination of benzimidazole anthelmintics at a glassy carbon rotating-disk electrode modified with poly(3-methylthiophene) is presented. The purpose of surface modification was to improve the sensitivity and limits of detection for determination of the compounds in a standard mixture. Thus, five compounds, namely thiabendazole, mebendazole, albendazole, fenbendazole and oxibendazole have been studied using square wave voltammetry. It has been possible to resolve four of the compounds, mebendazole, fenbendazole, oxibendazole and thiabendazole, in a mixture. Investigations of a number of parameters, including the mode of potential application, cathodic reduction versus anodic oxidation, the type of electrode, effect of pH and speed of electrode rotation, among others, are reported. South African Journal of Chemistry Vol.56 2003: 5-

Synthesis and characterization of molecularly imprinted polymers for the remediation of PCBs and dioxins in aqueous environments

This paper, reports on the approach devised to remediate water sources contaminated with PCBs and dioxins. The approach reported is based on the synthesis of highly selective molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). The paper elaborates the materials, procedures and protocols devised and followed for the synthesis of MIPs..

Synthesis of liposomes using α-phosphotidycholine and metabolites obtained from Elephantorrhiza elephantina and Pentanisia prunelloides

Plant saponins exhibit numerous pharmacological characteristics desirable for long term hyperlipidemic therapy through their cholesterol binding capacity due to the formation of liposomes/phytosomes which ultimately decreases the gastrointestinal absorption of cholesterol. This may result in the reduction of the blood plasma cholesterol levels; hence, mitigating cardiovascular and atherosclerotic problems that are associated with elevated plasma cholesterol concentrations. In this study, we reported for the first time a potential method of synthesizing phytosomes/liposomes from two medicinal plants Pentanisia prunelloides (Rubiaceae) and Elephantorrhiza elephantina (Fabaceae) saponin extracts and fractions using α-phosphotidycholine and cholesterol. This was done to explore the possibility of cholesterol binding capacity of fractions and extracts of the two medicinal plants as a justification of their application by traditional healers in managing body weight as well as averting hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis. Spherical nanoparticles/phytosomes/liposomes were clearly identified in the TEM images with particle sizes ranging between tens and hundreds of nanometers. The zeta potential of the nanoparticles fell between -5 and +5 mV indicating that they have a high potential for aggregation; hence, making it relatively very difficult for the complexed cholesterol molecules to permeate the microscopic pores in the alimentary tract.Keywords: Frontier transmission infra-red (FTIR), liposomes, adjuvants, zeta-potential, α-phosphotidycholineAfrican Journal of Biotechnology, Vol 13(12), 1402-141