Paulo J.S. Barbeira

Flow injection amperometric detection of ascorbic acid using a Prussian Blue film-modified electrode.

The PB film-modified electrode was used as an amperometric detector for flow injection analysis of ascorbic acid. The modified electrode detector showed good sensitivity, stability and reproducibility. The calibration curve for ascorbic acid was linear over the concentration range from 5.0x10(-6) to 1.0x10(-3) mol l(-1) with a slope of 19.9 mA mol(-1) per litre and a correlation coefficient of 0.999. The detection limit of this method was 2.49x10(-6) mol l(-1). The relative standard deviation of six replicate injections of 2.5x10(-4) mol l(-1) ascorbic acid was 2.5%. The results obtained for ascorbic acid determination in pharmaceutical products are in good agreement with those obtained by using the procedure involving the reaction between triiodide and ascorbic acid.

Spectral, electrochemical, and catalytic properties of a homologous series of manganese porphyrins as cytochrome P450 model: The effect of the degree of β-bromination

A homologous series of beta-brominated porphyrins derived from meso-tetrakis(4-carbomethoxyphenyl)porphyrinatomanganese(III) chloride, i.e., Mn(III)(Br(x)TCMPP)Cl (x=0,2,4,6, and 8), was prepared and investigated as cytochrome P450 models. Hydroxylations of cyclohexane by iodosylbenzene (PhIO) and iodobenzene diacetate (PhI(OAc)(2)) in the presence or absence of water were carried out as P450 model reactions. The influence of the degree of beta-bromination of the macrocycle on the UV-vis spectra, the Mn(III)/Mn(II) reduction potential, and the catalytic properties of the Mn(III)(Br(x)TCMPP)Cl (x=0,2,4,6, and 8) series were examined. The catalytic efficiency does not correlate with the Mn(III)/Mn(II) reduction potential and shows a bell-shaped behavior, where the best results are achieved with the hexabrominated complex. Better hydroxylation yields were achieved by using PhI(OAc)(2) as oxygen donor, but at expenses of catalyst recovery; addition of water to this system resulted in a increase in the reaction rate. Recycling of the more oxidatively robust complexes Mn(III)(Br(6)TCMPP)Cl and Mn(III)(Br(8)TCMPP)Cl is feasible when using PhIO as oxygen donor. Selectivity and UV-vis data suggested that hydroxylation by both PhIO and PhI(OAc)(2) share closely related active species and mechanism. We also show that the Mn(III)/Mn(II) reduction potentials are inappropriate predictors of P450-type activity of Mn porphyrin-catalyzed oxidations.

Determination of residual oil in diesel oil by spectrofluorimetric and chemometric analysis

Multivariate calibration (PLS), principal components analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA), associated to synchronous spectrofluorimetry, were used to identify and quantify non-transesterified residual vegetable oil in diesel oil with the addition of 2% of biodiesel (B2). The addition of residual oil, one of the easiest ways of adultering fuel, damages engines and leads to tax evasion. Using this method, the samples of diesel oil, B2, and B2 contaminated with residual oil were classified correctly and separated into three well-defined groups. The quantification of residual oil in B2 was carried out in the 0-25% (w/w) band, RMSEC and RMSEP values ranging from 0.26 to 0.48% (w/w) and 1.6-2.6% (w/w), respectively. The method is highly sensitive and efficient to identify and quantify this type of adulterant in which 100% of the samples were correctly classified and the average relative error was approximately 4% in the range 0.5-25% (w/w).

Atypical fluoroquinolone gold(III) chelates as potential anticancer agents: Relevance of DNA and protein interactions for their mechanism of action

Quinolones are known for their antimicrobial and antitumor activities. Gold(III) compounds constitute an emerging class of biologically active substances, of special interest as potential anticancer agents. In this work three gold(III) complexes of the fluoroquinolones antimicrobial agents norfloxacin (NOR), levofloxacin (LEVO) and sparfloxacin (SPAR) were prepared and characterized with physicochemical and spectroscopic techniques. In these complexes, NOR, LEVO and SPAR act as bidentate neutral ligands bound to gold(III) through the nitrogen atoms of the piperazine ring, which is an unusual mode of coordination for this class of compounds. Two chloride ions occupy the remaining coordination sites. The cytotoxic activity of the fluoroquinolones and their gold(III) complexes was tested against the A20 (murine lymphoma), B16-F10 (murine melanoma) and K562 (human myeloid leukemia) tumor cell lines as well as the L919 (murine lung fibroblasts) and MCR-5 (human lung fibroblasts) normal cells lines. All complexes were more active than their corresponding free ligands. Complex [AuCl(2)(LEVO)]Cl was selected for DNA fragmentation and cell cycle analysis. Spectroscopic titration with calf-thymus DNA (CT DNA) showed that the complexes can bind weakly to CT DNA, probably by an external contact (electrostatic or groove binding). The complexes exhibit good binding propensity to bovine serum albumin (BSA) having relatively high binding constant values.

Potentiometric determination of potassium cations using a nickel(II) hexacyanoferrate-modified electrode

Electroactive nickel(II) hexacyanoferrate (NiHCF) thin film modified electrodes are effective potentiometric sensors for the determination of potassium ions. The NiHCF films are deposited onto glassy carbon electrodes by repetitive potential cycling in K(3)Fe(CN)(6)/NaNO(3)/Ni(NO(3))(2) solution. The modified electrodes exhibit a linear response to potassium ions in the concentration range 1x10(-3) to 2.0 mol dm(-3), with a near-Nernstian slope (45-49 mV per decade) at 25 degrees C. In the determination of potassium ion in syrups used for treatment of potassium deficiency, the NiHCF-modified electrode gave comparable results to those obtained using flame emission spectrophotometry.

Determination of ethanol and specific gravity in gasoline by distillation curves and multivariate analysis

The partial least-squares regression method (PLS) was employed to predict the amount of ethanol and specific gravity in automotive gasoline using distillation curves (ASTM-D86). Additionally, a comparison was made between regression coefficients of all the algorithms, after selecting the number of latent variables. The low values obtained for RMSEC and RMSEP, associated with high accuracy when compared to the standard methodologies (NBR-13992, ASTM-D4052 and D1298) showed that PLS was efficient to determine the ethanol content and specific gravity in gasoline, since the model contains samples of different gasoline compositions, thus reflecting the variety of fuel in the Brazilian market. In addition, the proposed method is low cost, time reducing and easy to implement, as it utilizes the results of a routine assay carried out to evaluate the quality of automotive fuel.

Simultaneous determination of trace amounts of zinc, lead and copper in rum by anodic stripping voltammetry

The determination of traces of Zn, Pb and Cu in rum samples by anodic stripping voltammetry without previous treatment or addition of a supporting electrolyte, using a hanging mercury drop electrode, is described. The choice of an appropriate stripping voltammetric method and deposition potential minimizes the influence of the organic content and ensures good reproductibility of the measurements. The reliability of the method was tested by comparing the results with those given by absorption spectrometry, the differences being about 10%. The method allows heavy metal ions to be determined in the mug l(-1) concentration range.

Quantification of fullerene nanoparticles suspensions in water based on optical scattering.

Fullerenes, and in particular the C60, have been intensively investigated in the last decades mainly because of their vast range of potential applications in biomedicine and materials science. These molecules are inherently hydrophobic, tending thus to form clusters and aggregates in polar solvents resulting in colloidal suspensions. In this work was developed a quantification method for C60 nanoparticles (nano-C60) in colloidal aqueous suspensions based on optical light scattering (nephelometry). This method can be done in a conventional spectrofluorimeter either on the excitation wavelengths or on the second-order satellite lines that arise from the diffraction gratings. The detection limit of the proposed method was about (0.0090+/-0.0008) mg L(-1), in a linear concentration range from 0.007 to 0.360 mg L(-1). A comparison of this scattering technique with spectrophotometry based on molecular absorption shows that for the former, even at the second-order lines, the threshold concentrations detected are about 20 times lower that the latter.

Norfloxacin Zn(II)-based complexes: acid base ionization constant determination, DNA and albumin binding properties and the biological effect against Trypanosoma cruzi.

Zn(II) complexes with norfloxacin (NOR) in the absence or in the presence of 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) were obtained and characterized. In both complexes, the ligand NOR was coordinated through a keto and a carboxyl oxygen. Tetrahedral and octahedral geometries were proposed for [ZnCl2(NOR)]·H2O (1) and [ZnCl2(NOR)(phen)]·2H2O (2), respectively. Since the biological activity of the chemicals depends on the pH value, pH titrations of the Zn(II) complexes were performed. UV spectroscopic studies of the interaction of the complexes with calf-thymus DNA (CT DNA) have suggested that they can bind to CT DNA with moderate affinity in an intercalative mode. The interactions between the Zn(II) complexes and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were investigated by steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy at pH 7.4. The experimental data showed static quenching of BSA fluorescence, indicating that both complexes bind to BSA. A modified Stern–Volmer plot for the quenching by complex 2 demonstrated preferential binding near one of the two tryptophan residues of BSA. The binding constants obtained (Kb) showed that BSA had a two orders of magnitude higher affinity for complex 2 than for 1. The results also showed that the affinity of both complexes for BSA was much higher than for DNA. This preferential interaction with protein sites could be important to their biological mechanisms of action. The analysis in vitro of the Zn(II) complexes and corresponding ligand were assayed against Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease and the data showed that complex 2 was the most active against bloodstream trypomastigotes.

A study of adulteration in gasoline samples using flame emission spectroscopy and chemometrics tools

This work presents a low cost system based on Flame Emission Spectroscopy (FES) that enables the prediction of fuel adulteration. The spectral data acquired using FES were associated with chemometric tools--Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) and Partial Least Squares (PLS), aiming to predict gasoline adulterations with different solvents. The classification of the Brazilian adulterated gasoline samples with turpentine, thinner, kerosene, rubber solvent and ethanol was carried out through a PLS-DA model built using five latent variables (LV) with an accumulated variance of 100% on X and 76.78% on Y. The combination of these techniques provided the discrimination of distinct groups for each one of the studied adulterants. Subsequent to the classification, samples of adulterated gasoline with the same solvents with contents varying from 1 to 50% (v/v) were analyzed through FES and multivariate calibration curves were employed in order to predict the contents of the respective solvents. The results obtained by the combination of FES and PLS provided the determination of gasoline adulterants with small calibration and validation errors and also lower values than the ones reported in the literature using other spectroscopic techniques.