Analytical Methods Blog

A colorimetric assay that detects Cr³⁺ has been developed by Aiguo Wu, from the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, and colleagues. By using tripolyphosphate functionalized gold nanoparticles a colour change from red to violet was observed. The test showed excellent selectivity, even when samples contained many other ions. Real water samples were tested with good agreement on tested results by ICP-AES.

Colorimetric detection of Cr³⁺ using tripolyphosphate modified gold nanoparticles in aqueous solutions
Junwei Xin, Lijing Miao, Shougang Chen and Aiguo Wu
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY25061F

Old cinematic films that have been donated to archives such as the British Film Institute have often been stored for decades in attics, cupboards and sheds. These inappropriate storage conditions have led to fungal colonisation on films, resulting in damaged film and the production of spores. Not only is this destroying historical footage, it’s also posing a serious inhalation hazard to archivists that process and inspect the films.

A mouldy film reel © Craig Banks

Craig Banks and his team at Manchester Metropolitan University in the UK have come up with a technique to detect mould on old film to help archivists decide how best to handle it. Using solid-phase micro-extraction coupled with gas chromatography mass spectrometry, the team detected microbial volatile organic compounds (MVOCs) on old cine film. MVOCs are only produced when mould is actively growing. The team analysed sixteen fungal isolates found on the cine film and from these, detected over 150 volatile compounds. Three of the MVOCs (1-octen-3-ol, 3-octanone and 3-octanol) were present in all the fungal isolates tested, so detecting them in particular would indicate that mould is actively growing on the film.

Read the full story here in Chemistry World.

Link to journal article:

Identification of microbial volatile organic compounds (MVOCs) emitted from fungal isolates found on cinematographic film
Gavin D. Bingley, Joanna Verran, Lindsey J. Munro and Craig E. Banks
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05826J

It’s been a busy year already with so many great articles, so here are some HOT articles from Analytical Methods that you might have missed this month!

Why not take a look, they will be free to read for 2 weeks.

Separation of dansyl-DL-amino acids by open tubular capillary chromatography based on tube radial distribution phenomenon of the ternary mixed carrier solvents
Yudai Kudo, Hyo Kan, Naoya Jinno, Masahiko Hashimoto and Kazuhiko Tsukagoshi
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05813H

Fluorescent boronic acid-modified polymer nanoparticles for enantioselective monosaccharide detection
Wan-Kyu Oh, Yoon Seon Jeong, Kyung Jin Lee and Jyongsik Jang
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05800F

Quantitative monitoring of the progress of organic reactions using multivariate image analysis-thin layer chromatography (MIA-TLC) method
Bahram Hemmateenejad, Morteza Akhond, Zahra Mohammadpour and N. Mobaraki
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY25023C

Quality assurance in immunoassay performance-temperature effects
Julia Grandke, Ute Resch-Genger, Wolfram Bremser, Leif-Alexander Garbe and Rudolf J. Schneider
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05918E

Copper-promoted probe for nitric oxide based on o-phenylenediamine: Large blue-shift in absorption and fluorescence enhancement
Xiaolong Sun, Yufang Xu, Weiping Zhu, Chunsheng He, Lin Xu, Youjun Yang and Xuhong Qian
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY25039J

On the stability of the silver/silver sulfate reference electrode
Matěj Velický, Kin Y. Tam and Robert A. W. Dryfe
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY00011C

Direct labeling rolling circle amplification as a straightforward signal amplification technique for biodetection formats
Lena Linck, Edda Reiß, Frank Bier and Ute Resch-Genger
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05760C

In this HOT paper António Rangel from Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Portugal, and colleagues have developed an automated optosensor to determine levels of bromate in drinking water. The sensor was based on the formation of a colored radical cation after oxidation of chlorpromazine by bromate. Bromate is a by-product of chemical water treatment, and this new sensor can detect levels that meet the requirements of current EU and USA legislation.

Click through and take a look at the paper, it will be free to read for 2 weeks.

Automated solid-phase spectrophotometric system for optosensing of bromate in drinking waters
Sara M. Oliveira, Hugo M. Oliveira, Marcela A. Segundo, António O. S. S. Rangel, José L. F. C. Lima and Víctor Cerdà
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05860J

Rangel et al., Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article

Boddis and Russell, Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 637-641

Take a look at our picks from the latest issue of Analytical Methods.

Featured this month:

• Critical Review on methods for the evaluation of bitterness and their application in the pharmaceutical and food industries
• A highly selective electrochemical sensor for dopamine
• Antibody-magnetic particle conjugates for fingerprint analysis
• Barrels ued to age Brazilian cachaças*
• Trace analysis in edible vegetable oils
• Quantitative analysis of phosphopeptides

*A liquor made from fermented sugarcane juice, also known as aguardente, pinga and caninha.

Find out more and read all the articles in full

Featured in the latest issue: a Critical Review on magnetic resonance techniques and a number of HOT articles, which will be free to access until the end of February.  Don’t forget to take a look at the issue in full via the journal homepage.

Critical Review: Low field magnetic resonance techniques in the development of nanomaterials for biomedical applications
Carla J. Meledandri and Dermot F. Brougham
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 331-341
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05420E

Communication: Engineering a unimolecular multifunctional DNA probe for analysis of Hg²⁺ and Ag⁺
Xiaoxiao He, Zhihe Qing, Kemin Wang, Zhen Zou, Hui Shi and Jin Huang
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 345-347
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05823E

Communication: Simultaneous determination of two important dopamine metabolites at physiological pH by voltammetry
S. Brillians Revin and S. Abraham John
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 348-352
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05664J

Communication: A new labelling reagent for glycans analysis by capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry
Cai Tie and Xin-Xiang Zhang
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 357-359
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05741G

Communication: A graphene oxide–rhodamine 6G nanocomposite as turn-on fluorescence probe for selective detection of DNA
Xue Wang, Shuhua Zhong, Yu He and Gongwu Song
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 360-362
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05827H

Arsenic species and selected metals in human urine: validation of HPLC/ICPMS and ICPMS procedures for a long-term population-based epidemiological study
Jürgen Scheer, Silvia Findenig, Walter Goessler, Kevin A. Francesconi, Barbara Howard, Jason G. Umans, Jonathan Pollak, Maria Tellez-Plaza, Ellen K. Silbergeld, Eliseo Guallar and Ana Navas-Acien
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 406-413
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05638K

Monitoring intracellular nitric oxide production using microchip electrophoresis and laser-induced fluorescence detection
Emilie R. Mainz, Dulan B. Gunasekara, Giuseppe Caruso, Derek T. Jensen, Matthew K. Hulvey, Jose Alberto Fracassi da Silva, Eve C. Metto, Anne H. Culbertson, Christopher T. Culbertson and Susan M. Lunte
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 414-420
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05542B

Multivariate calibration of near-infrared spectra by using influential variables
Xueguang Shao, Min Zhang and Wensheng Cai
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 467-473
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05609G

Mass spectrometric imaging as a high-spatial resolution tool for functional genomics: Tissue-specific gene expression of TT7 inferred from heterogeneous distribution of metabolites in Arabidopsis flowers
Andrew R. Korte, Zhihong Song, Basil J. Nikolau and Young Jin Lee
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 474-481
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05618F

A simple and sensitive colorimetric method for detection of mercury ions based on anti-aggregation of gold nanoparticles
Tingting Lou, Ling Chen, Chunrong Zhang, Qi Kang, Huiyan You, Dazhong Shen and Lingxin Chen
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 488-491
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05764F

A method to diagnose urinary lithiasis at an early stage has been devised by Wei Hang and colleagues in Xiamen, China. The method can also distinguish between the different types of stone, which is important when considering treatment options.

Currently, distinguishing between types can only be done after the stones have been removed from a patient, making it difficult to prescribe a treatment.

Urinary lithiasis, stones in the lower urinary tract, has become more common, with about 100,000 new cases each year. It causes substantial pain and leads to renal failure. The stones are caused by a build up of organic materials and inorganic crystals.

The team’s diagnostic method uses elemental analysis on blood serum samples to detect the levels of barium, gallium, antimony and sodium; variations from the norm are linked to the appearance of stones. The test subjects could then be subdivided into calcareous and non-calcareous stone patients by metallomic profiling, and the team found that selenium levels play a major role in this classification.

Gao et al., Anal. Methods, 2012

Compared with urine samples, blood serum samples show smaller variability under normal physiological conditions so are a better choice for elemental screening, say the researchers.

Early diagnosis of urinary lithiasis via elementary profile of serum samples
Yao Gao, Ning Yang, Xiaomei Yan, Wei Hang, Jinchun Xing, Jiaxin Zheng, Eryi Zhu and Benli Huang
Anal. Methods, 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05705K

You may also be interested in:

Direct infusion mass spectrometry or liquid chromatography mass spectrometry for human metabonomics? A serum metabonomic study of kidney cancer
Lin Lin, Quan Yu, Xiaomei Yan, Wei Hang, Jiaxin Zheng, Jinchun Xing and Benli Huang
Analyst, 2010, 135, 2970-2978
DOI: 10.1039/C0AN00265H

Critical Review: Combination of PAGE and LA-ICP-MS as an analytical workflow in metallomics: state of the art, new quantification strategies, advantages and limitations
Alessandra Sussulini and Johanna Sabine Becker
Metallomics, 2011, 3, 1271-1279
DOI: 10.1039/C1MT00116G

Anderson et al., Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 101-105

Dana Spence and colleagues at Michigan State University have developed a way to study the P2X1 receptor on platelets, providing new possibilities for the research of these important cells.

The primary function of platelets in the bloodstream involves maintaining hemostasis and preventing blood loss through the clotting process.

Platelets are found in the bloodstream and function to maintain hemostasis and prevent blood loss via clotting.  Adenine receptors on the surface of the platelet are important in this process, most notably the ADP-sensitive receptors P2Y1/P2Y12, and the ATP-sensitive P2X1 receptor.

Roles for P2Y-type receptors in platelet activation are well established, but the role of the P2X1 receptor is less clear as it has proven difficult to study.  P2X1 is rapidly desensitised during in vitro experiments, particularly when the platelets have been separated from plasma and washed.

Professor Dana Spence, Michigan State University, USA

Here, Professor Spence – who is on the Advisory Board of Analytical Methods‘ sister journal, Analyst – and his team use the reported P2X1 inhibitor NF449 to sensitise washed platelets, enabling them to be properly studied.

In a press release from MSU, Professor Spence says, “This receptor, P2X1, has long been viewed as not important in platelets; our studies show that is not necessarily true. The receptor is very active; you just need to be careful in working with it.”

He hopes that this now opens up investigation of the P2X1 receptor as a potential drug target for the treatment of conditions such as diabetes and hypertension.

Read the paper in full:

Measuring P2X1 receptor activity in washed platelets in the absence of exogenous apyrase
Kari B. Anderson ,  Welivitiya Karunarathne and Dana M. Spence
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 101-105
DOI: 10.1039/C1AY05530E

Here at Analytical Methods we like to make it as easy as possible for you to access the latest high-impact analytical science.  So, from now on we’ll let you know which HOT articles feature in each new issue.  Look out for updates, and for longer posts on some of the most exciting new research published.

In Issue 1, you can enjoy the following HOT papers, which will be free to access for 2 weeks from Monday 9 January:

Critical Review: Capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detection on microfluidic systems — ten years of development
Wendell Karlos Tomazelli Coltro, Renato Sousa Lima, Thiago Pinotti Segato, Emanuel Carrilho, Dosil Pereira de Jesus, Claudimir Lucio do Lago and José Alberto Fracassi da Silva
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 25-33
DOI: 10.1039/C1AY05364G

Quantitative UPLC-MS/MS analysis of the gut microbial co-metabolites phenylacetylglutamine, 4-cresyl sulphate and hippurate in human urine: INTERMAP Study
Anisha Wijeyesekera, Philip A. Clarke, Magda Bictash, Ian J. Brown, Mark Fidock, Thomas Ryckmans, Ivan K. S. Yap, Queenie Chan, Jeremiah Stamler, Paul Elliott, Elaine Holmes and Jeremy K. Nicholson
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 65-72
DOI: 10.1039/C1AY05427A

In situ monitoring of polymer redox states by resonance μRaman spectroscopy and its applications in polymer modified microfluidic channels
Hella Logtenberg, Laurens-Jan C. Jellema, Maria J. Lopez-Martinez, Jetsuda Areephong, Elisabeth Verpoorte, Ben L. Feringa and Wesley R. Browne
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 73-79
DOI: 10.1039/C1AY05475A

Characterizing the dual-wavelength dye indo-1 for calcium-ion sensing under pressure
Jordan Ryan and Paul Urayama
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 80-84
DOI: 10.1039/C1AY05486D

A simple system for the measurement of the distribution of activities of individual molecules of E. coli β-galactosidase
Douglas B. Craig
Anal. Methods, 2012, 4, 85-88
DOI: 10.1039/C2AY05627E