Deep-UV Laser Ablation Technology Coupled with Plasma Quadrupole Mass Spectrometry for Rapid Determination of Nickel

Knowledge of nickel/vanadium (Ni/V) ratios in petroleum fuel is essential to source geochemical information and to limit catalytic poisoning and corrosive effects in chemical refining processes.

However, these ratios have been found to vary widely and are affected by various factors, including the sulphur content of the petroleum feedstock. They are normally obtained by digesting and treating the feedstock in suitable acid or organic media followed by numerical analysis.

Our research investigated a novel sample introduction technique for obtaining Ni/V ratios by ablating petrified asphaltene samples (following liquid nitrogen pre-treatment) with a 213 nm laser beam coupled to a hyphenated plasma mass spectroscopic system.

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Tobacco Smoke-Induced Alterations in Hepatic Lipid Profiles Demonstrated by Imaging Mass Spectrometry

To account for differences in susceptibility to alcoholic liver disease (ALD), tobacco smoking should be evaluated as a potential cofactor given the very high percentage of heavy drinkers also smoke, and the NNK tobacco-specific nitrosamine was shown to cause steatohepatitis and exacerbate molecular and biochemical effects of alcohol on the liver.

Since one of the key factors linked to ALD progression is dysregulated lipid metabolism, we examined effects of cigarette smoke (CS) exposures on hepatic lipid profiles using matrix-assisted laser desorption and ionization imaging mass spectrometry (MALDI-IMS).

Adult male A/J mice were exposed to air (8 weeks; A8), CS for 4 (CS4) or 8 (CS8) weeks; or CS8 with 2 weeks recovery (CS8+R). MALDI-IMS demonstrated broad CS-associated reductions in hepatic phospholipids that were partly ameliorated by short-term recovery.

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Tobacco Smoke-Induced Alterations in Hepatic Lipid Profiles Demonstrated by Imaging Mass Spectrometry

To account for differences in susceptibility to alcoholic liver disease (ALD), tobacco smoking should be evaluated as a potential cofactor given the very high percentage of heavy drinkers also smoke, and the NNK tobacco-specific nitrosamine was shown to cause steatohepatitis and exacerbate molecular and biochemical effects of alcohol on the liver.

Since one of the key factors linked to ALD progression is dysregulated lipid metabolism, we examined effects of cigarette smoke (CS) exposures on hepatic lipid profiles using matrix-assisted laser desorption and ionization imaging mass spectrometry (MALDI-IMS).

Adult male A/J mice were exposed to air (8 weeks; A8), CS for 4 (CS4) or 8 (CS8) weeks; or CS8 with 2 weeks recovery (CS8+R). MALDI-IMS demonstrated broad CS-associated reductions in hepatic phospholipids that were partly ameliorated by short-term recovery.

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One-Pot Synthesis of Substituted N-Phenyl Pyrazoles Using Ionic Liquid

Pyrazole containing natural products are very rare and such heterocycles are frequently encountered in agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, materials science, and synthetic chemistry.

Compounds bearing the pyrazole nucleus, in particular, have exhibited a wide spectrum of therapeutic application and a plethora of drugs have progressed to the market, such as lonazolac, fipronil, Viagra, celecoxib, and many others.

Pyrazoles also constantly act as essential building blocks of ligands for transition metals, supermolecules, and liquid crystals.

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In Silico Molecular Docking Analysis Of Orientin, A Potent Glycoside of Luteolin against BCL-2 Family Proteins

Apoptosis is an implicit cell suicide pathway which plays a pivotal role in both normal and pathophysiological conditions. The intrinsic apoptotic pathway is tightly regulated by BCL-2 family proteins.

In order to trigger apoptosis in cancerous cells, several chemotherapeutic agents were being used as anticancer agents, but still novel compounds are explored for enhanced chemoprevention.

The computational approaches towards screening of active compounds made easier to ascertain their possible mechanism of action before experimental trials. Orientin, the C-glycoside of luteolin (Luteolin-8-C-glucoside) is known to exert the promising cytotoxic effect in human cancer cell lines.

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Forced Degradation Study of Monoclonal Antibody Using Two- Dimensional Liquid Chromatography

Monoclonal antibody (mAb) products are extraordinarily heterogeneous due to the presence of a variety of enzymatic and chemical modifications, such as deamidation, isomerization, oxidation, glycosylation, glycation, terminal cyclization, aggregation, and fragmentation.

Forced degradation study is a common practice to assess the potential modifications and degradation pathways of mAbs upon extreme conditions, including light exposure and extreme local pH.

The degraded samples are subject to characterization using a wide array of analyses, including ion exchange chromatography (IEC) for charge variants and size exclusion chromatography (SEC) for size variants.

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Sub-Acute Toxicity Studies of Alchornea cordifolia Leaf Extract in Swiss Albino Rats

The ethanolic leaf extract of Alchornea cordifolia (Schum. and Thonn.) Müll. Arg (Euphorbiaceae), a widely used traditional medicinal plant was assessed for possible sub-acute toxicity in Swiss albino rats.

The rats were randomly distributed into five groups of four animals each. The groups were respectively administered 125, 250, 500 and 750 mg/kg body weight ethanolic leaf extract of Alchornea cordifolia intra peritoneally daily for (two weeks) 14 days.

Normal saline was administered to the control group according to their body weights. The experimental animals were observed for another 14 days before the termination of the experiment. The weight of the animals was recorded daily throughout the duration of the study.

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Systematic Preparation of Artificial Cells (DNA Crown Cells)

Artificial cells, which are engineered particles that mimic one or many functions of biological cells, have attracted much attention in recent decades as a new technology.

In a previous study, artificial cells were prepared using chicken eggs and sphingosine-DNA. The resulting DNA crown cells were surrounded by a membrane containing lipid and DNA, which was formed with egg white components.

The study describes a novel method that allows the easy preparation of DNA crown cells using adenosine and monolaurin.

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Synthesis of Surface Molecularly Imprinting Polymers for Methylphenidate and its Application in Separating Methylphenidate

In this study, a novel approach is proposed for determination of methylphenidate in biological fluids. In this method molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE), as the sample extraction technique, combined with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is used.

The water-compatible molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were prepared using methacrylic acid as functional monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as cross-linker, Hexane as porogen and methylphenidate as template molecule.

Extraction of methylphenidate from human serum was carried out using a novel imprinted polymer as the solid-phase extraction (SPE). Various parameters affecting the extraction efficiency of the polymer were evaluated.

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