Recent advances in developing optical and electrochemical sensors for analysis of methamphetamine: A review

Recognition of misused stimulant drugs has always been a hot topic from a medical and judicial perspective. Methamphetamine (MAMP) is an addictive and illegal drug that profoundly affects the central nervous system. Like other illicit drugs, the detection of MAMP in biological and street samples is vital for several organizations such as forensic medicine, anti-drug headquarters and diagnostic clinics. By emerging nanotechnology and exploiting nanomaterials in sensing applications, a great deal of attention has been given to the design of analytical sensors in MAMP tracing. For the first time, this study has briefly reviewed all the optical and electrochemical sensors in MAMP detection from earlier so far. How various receptors with engineering nanomaterials allow developing novel approaches to measure MAMP have been studied. Fundamental concepts related to optical and electrochemical recognition assays in which nanomaterials have been used and relevant MAMP sensing applications have been comprehensively covered. Challenges, opportunities and future outlooks of this field have also been discussed at the end. (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Graphene Quantum Dots/Eggshell Membrane Composite as a Nano-sorbent for Preconcentration and Determination of Organophosphorus Pesticides by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography

In this study graphene quantum dots/eggshell membrane nanocomposite (GQDS/ESM) is prepared and used as an efficient solid-phase extraction (SPE) sorbent for preconcentration of organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs) from aqueous solutions. The retained analytes on the sorbent are stripped by acetonitrile and subsequently are determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. Various parameters affecting the extraction efficiency of OPPs on the GQDS/ESM, such as solution pH, amount of nano-sorbent, sample loading flow rate, elution conditions and sample volume are investigated. The results demonstrated that the proposed method has a wide dynamic linear range (0.05–100 ng mL-1), good linearity (R2>0.997) and low detection limits (0.006-0.32 ng mL-1). High enrichment factors are achieved ranging from 110 to 140. In the optimum experimental conditions, the established method is successfully applied for the determination of OPPs in spiked water samples (well, tap, shaft and canal) and apple juice. Satisfactory recovery results show that the sample matrices under consideration do not significantly affect the extraction process

Development of graphene-carbon nanotube-coated magnetic nanocomposite as an efficient sorbent for HPLC determination of organophosphorus pesticides in environmental water samples

<div><p>ABSTRACT</p><p>A magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) method coupled to high performance liquid chromatography with UV (HPLC-UV) was proposed for the determination of organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs) at trace levels in environmental water samples. The ternary nanocomposite of graphene-carbon nanotube-Fe₃O₄ (G-CNT-Fe₃O₄) has been synthesised via a simple solvothermal process and the resultant material was characterised by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Significant factors that affect the extraction efficiency, such as amount of magnetic nanocomposite, extraction time, ionic strength, solution pH and desorption conditions were carefully investigated. The results demonstrated that the proposed method had a wide dynamic linear range (0.005–200 ng mL⁻¹), good linearity (<i>R</i>² = 0.9955–0.9996) and low detection limits (1.4–11 pg mL⁻¹). High enrichment factors were achieved ranging from 930 to 1510. The results show that the developed method is suitable for trace level monitoring of OPPs in environmental water samples.</p></div

Salt-Mediated Organic Solvent Precipitation for Enhanced Recovery of Peptides Generated by Pepsin Digestion

Conventional solvent-based precipitation makes it challenging to obtain a high recovery of low mass peptides. However, we previously demonstrated that the inclusion of salt ions, specifically ZnSO4, together with high concentrations of acetone, maximizes the recovery of peptides generated from trypsin digestion. We herein generalized this protocol to the rapid (5 min) precipitation of pepsin-digested peptides recovered from acidic matrices. The precipitation protocol extended to other organic solvents (acetonitrile), with high recovery from dilute peptide samples permitting preconcentration and purification. Mass spectrometry profiling of pepsin-generated peptides demonstrated that the protocol captured peptides as small as 800 u, although with a preferential bias towards recovering larger and more hydrophobic peptides. The precipitation protocol was applied to rapidly quench, concentrate, and purify pepsin-digested samples ahead of MS. Complex mixtures of yeast and plasma proteome extracts were successfully precipitated following digestion, with over 95% of MS-identified peptides observed in the pellet fraction. The full precipitation workflow—including the digestion step—can be completed in under 10 min, with direct MS analysis of the recovered peptide pellets showing exceptional protein sequence coverage

Salt-Mediated Organic Solvent Precipitation for Enhanced Recovery of Peptides Generated by Pepsin Digestion

Conventional solvent-based precipitation makes it challenging to obtain a high recovery of low mass peptides. However, we previously demonstrated that the inclusion of salt ions, specifically ZnSO4, together with high concentrations of acetone, maximizes the recovery of peptides generated from trypsin digestion. We herein generalized this protocol to the rapid (5 min) precipitation of pepsin-digested peptides recovered from acidic matrices. The precipitation protocol extended to other organic solvents (acetonitrile), with high recovery from dilute peptide samples permitting preconcentration and purification. Mass spectrometry profiling of pepsin-generated peptides demonstrated that the protocol captured peptides as small as 800 u, although with a preferential bias towards recovering larger and more hydrophobic peptides. The precipitation protocol was applied to rapidly quench, concentrate, and purify pepsin-digested samples ahead of MS. Complex mixtures of yeast and plasma proteome extracts were successfully precipitated following digestion, with over 95% of MS-identified peptides observed in the pellet fraction. The full precipitation workflow—including the digestion step—can be completed in under 10 min, with direct MS analysis of the recovered peptide pellets showing exceptional protein sequence coverage

Walnut bloom powder as a waste-based sorbent for cationic dyes removal: equilibrium, kinetic, and thermodynamic studies

In the present study, for the first time, walnut bloom (WB) powder was used as a natural and economic sorbent for the removal of methylene blue (MB) from an aqueous solution. This new biosorbent was characterized using the following techniques: scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), COHNS, BET (Brunauer-Emmett-Teller) analysis and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. MB removal efficiency and its adsorption onto WB powder were tested in a batch system by varying parameters such as initial dye concentration, contact time, pH, temperature, and dosage of biosorbent in which the removal percentages of ∼92% was achieved under the optimum conditions. Equilibrium data and adsorption isotherms fitted well with the Langmuir model (R2= 0.999, 0˂RL˂1) with a maximum monolayer adsorption capacity of 46 mg g-1. The chemical kinetics of MB adsorption followed the pseudo-second-order model. Also, the magnitude of thermodynamic functions identified the removal of MB. ΔH of -7.32 kJ mol-1 and ΔS of -4.32 kJ mol-1 indicated the spontaneity, exothermicity, and favorability of the adsorption process at room temperature.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author