A rapid high performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of sphinganine (Sa) and sphingosine (So) in urine samples by employing a silica-based monolithic column is described. The samples were first extracted using ethyl acetate and derivatized using ortho-phthaldialdehyde in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol. C20 sphinganine was used as internal standard. Under the optimized conditions, separation was achieved using a mixture of methanol:water (93:7, v/v), column temperature at 30°C, flow rate of 1 mL min−1, and an injection volume of 10 μL. Good linearity was obtained for Sa and So over the concentration range 20–500 ng mL−1(correlation coefficients ≥0.9978). The detection limits were 0.45 ng mL−1 for Sa and

The current study performed in order to detect and quantify epicatechin in two tea samples of Camellia sinensis (black and green tea) by thin layer chromatography (TLC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Extraction of epicatechin from black and green tea was done by using two different methods: maceration (cold extraction method) and decoction (hot extraction method). Qualitative and quantitative determinations of epicatechin in two tea samples were investigated. Epicatechin identification was made by utilizing preliminary chemical tests and TLC. This identification was also boosted by HPLC and then quantified epicatechin in all ethyl acetate fractions of two tea samples. This research revealed the existence of epica

Effluent from incompetent wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) contains a great variety of pollutants so support water treatments are essential. The present work studies the removal of phosphate species from aqueous solutions by adsorption on to spherical Calcined Sand -Clay mixture (CSCM) used a natural, local and low-cost adsorbent. Batch experiments were performed to estimate removal efficiency of phosphate. The adsorption experiments were carried out as function of pH, dose of adsorbent, initial concentration, temperature and time of adsorption. The efficient removal was accomplished for pH between 10 and 12. The experimental results also showed that the removal of phosphate by (CSCM) was rapid (the % removal 98.9%, 92%, 90%, 89% in 6

In this study, (50–110 nm) magnetic iron oxide (α-Fe2O3) nanoparticles were synthesized by pulsed laser ablation of iron target in dimethylformamide (DMF) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) solutions. The structural properties of the synthesized nanoparticles were investigated by using Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, UV–VIS absorption, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The effect of laser fluence on the characteristics of these nanoparticles was studied. Antibacterial activities of iron oxide nanoparticles were tested against Gram-positive; Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative; Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens. The results sh

The Hbl toxin is a three-component haemolytic complex produced by Bacillus cereus sensu lato strains and implicated as a cause of diarrhoea in B. cereus food poisoning. While the structure of the HblB component of this toxin is known, the structures of the other components are unresolved. Here, we describe the expression of the recombinant HblL1 component and the elucidation of its structure to 1.36 Å. Like HblB, it is a member of the alpha-helical pore-forming toxin family. In comparison to other members of this group, it has an extended hydrophobic beta tongue region that may be involved in pore formation. Molecular docking was used to predict possible interactions between HblL1 and HblB, and suggests a head to tail dimer might f

The development of a reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography fluorescence method for the determination of the mycotoxins fumonisin B1 and fumonisin B2 by using silica-based monolithic column is described. The samples were first extracted using acetonitrile:water (50:50, v/v) and purified by using a C18 solid phase extraction-based clean-up column. Then, pre-column derivatization for the analyte using ortho-phthaldialdehyde in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol was carried out. The developed method involved optimization of mobile phase composition using methanol and phosphate buffer, injection volume, temperature and flow rate. The liquid chromatographic separation was performed using a reversed phase Chromolith® RP-18e column