O presente trabalho teve como objetivo o desenvolvimento e validação de um método analítico para a especiação de mercúrio em água com preparação de amostra por microextração em sorvente empacotado (MEPS) e determinação das espécies de mercúrio utilizando cromatografia líquida de alta eficiência hifenada à espectrometria de massa com plasma indutivamente acoplado (HPLC-ICP-MS). Para isso foram otimizadas as condições do sistema cromatográfico, do sistema de detecção e do procedimento de extração, considerando os parâmetros que influenciam diretamente na eficiência da análise, como o solvente de eluição, o agente complexante, o número de ciclos de extração e a velocidade de amostragem da seringa semi-automática eVol®. As melhores condições para o preparo de amostra foram encontradas com o uso de ditizona 0,001% m/v como agente complexante e eluição com 50?L de fase móvel, composta por 2-mercaptoetanol 0,05% v/v + L-cisteína 0,4% m/v + acetato de amônio 0,06 mol.L-1. Esse método apresentou valores de limite de detecção (LOD) de 0,19ng/L, 0,13ng/L e 0,16ng/L e recuperação de 100 ± 3%, 112 ± 0,9% e 91 ± 0,9% para mercúrio inorgânico (IHg), metilmercúrio (MeHg) e etilmercúrio (EtHg), respectivamente. A precisão intra-dia para cada espécie apresentou valores inferiores a 6,2% e a precisão inter-dia, valores interiores a 8,3%. Finalmente, o método proposto é uma excelente alternativa para a especiação química de mercúrio em amostras de água, garantindo uma melhor sensibilidade e reduzido volume de amostra. Além disso, poderá ser uma boa opção para pré-concentração de espécies de mercúrio in loco em estudos de contaminação ambiental em locais de difícil acesso e com pouca infraestrutura. / The aim of this study was to develop and validate a novel preconcentration method for determination of mercury species in water using a microextraction by packed sorbent (MEPS) based protocol followed by high performance liquid chromatography hyphenated to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (HPLC-ICP-MS). The optimized conditions of the HPLC and ICP-MS were determined and critical factors in MEPS protocol were established, including elution solvent, complexing agent, number of extraction cycles and sample flow rate of the semi-automated MEPS format (eVol®). The best sample preparation conditions were found with the use of dithizone 0,001% m/v as complexing agent and elution in 50?L of the mobile phase, containing 2-mercaptoethanol 0,05% v/v + L-cysteine 0,4% m/v + ammonium acetate 0,06 mol/L. The proposed method detection limit (LOD) was 0,19ng/L, 0,13ng/L and 0,16ng/L and the recovery was 100 ± 3%, 112 ± 0,9% and 91 ± 0,9% for inorganic mercury (IHg), methylmercury (MeHg) and ethylmercury (EtHg), respectively. The within-day precision was always lower than 6,2%, while the between-day precision was lower than 8,3% for the species determined. Finally, the proposed method is an excellent alternative for mercury speciation in water samples, ensuring a better sensitivity associated to small sample volume. Additionally, it may be a good option for preconcentration of mercury species in situ for environmental contamination studies in places of difficult access and poor infrastructure

Orientadores: Marco Aurélio Zezzi Arruda, Fábio Cesar Gozzo / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Química / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-25T19:33:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Pessoa_GustavodeSouza_D.pdf: 3326542 bytes, checksum: b4f5f4d1d6ae42d8ab1de1b683232723 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014 / Resumo: ANÁLISE DE ESPECIAÇÃO DE METAIS E METALÓIDES LIGADOS A ANIDRASE CARBÔNICA EMPREGANDO MOBILIDADE IÔNICA E ICP-MS. No Capítulo 1, é proposta a técnica de mobilidade iônica na modalidade TWIMS, acoplada a um espectrômetro de massas do tipo ESI-Q-ToF MS/MS para análise de especiação da anidrase carbônica ligada a metais divalentes e em diferentes estados de oxidação, bem como ligada a espécies de selênio em diferentes estados de oxidação. O método é aplicado com sucesso na separação de espécies com diferentes estados de oxidação, mesmo quando as espécies de Se4+ e Se6+são adicionadas em uma mistura com a anidrase carbônica. O método também é aplicado para avaliação do estado de enovelamento da anidrase carbônica, em condições nativas e desnaturadas, sendo considerado satisfatório na elucidação das diferentes conformações da proteína. No Capítulo 2, a técnica de ICP-MS é usada na análise de especiação isotópica de Zn ligado à anidrase. A exatidão das medidas aproximou-se das condições naturais observadas para a razão isotópica de Zn ao final das otimizações. A precisão obtida situa-se dentro da margem observada para analisadores de m/z do tipo quadrupolo. Os principais desafios enfrentados neste capítulo foram minimizar os efeitos de discriminação de massas e a remoção de interferências poliatômicas. A enzima foi enriquecida com os isótopos 67Zn e 68Zn, sendo observada maior razão isotópica para anidrase ligada 67Zn. A atividade da anidrase enriquecida com isótopos de Zn apresentou resultados estatisticamente semelhantes / Abstract: SPECIATION ANALYSIS OF METALS AND METALLOIDS BOUND TO CARBONIC ANHYDRASE USING ION MOBILITY AND ICP - MS . In Chapter 1, ion mobility in TWIMS mode was proposed, coupled to a ESI-Q-ToF MS/MS mass spectrometer for speciation analysis of carbonic anhydrase bound to Ba2+, Zn2+, Cu+, Cu2+, Pb2+, Pb4+, Se4+ and Se6+. The method was successfully applied to separation of selenium species with different oxidation states, even when the species Se4+ and Se6+ were incubated in a mixture with carbonic anhydrase. The method was also applied to evaluation of carbonic anhydrase folding state in native and denatured conditions, and it was considered as satisfactory in the elucidation of different conformations of the protein. In Chapter 2, an ICP-MS was used for the isotopic speciation analysis of Zn bound to anhydrase. The accuracy measurements were closer to natural conditions for Zn isotope ratio, in the end of the optimization. The precision was within the range observed for m/z analyzer such as quadrupole. The main challenges in this chapter were to minimize the effects of mass discrimination and the removal of polyatomic interferences. The enzyme was enriched with 67Zn and 68Zn isotopes, and the highest isotope ratio was observed for 67Zn bound to anhydrase. Anhydrase activity of Zn enriched isotopes yielded similar statistical results / Doutorado / Quimica Analitica / Doutor em Ciências

La mesure d’interaction entre une molécule candidate et sa cible biologique est d’un intérêt majeur dans la recherche de nouveaux composés thérapeutiques. A l’heure actuelle, le marquage radioactif est la méthode de référence pour ce type d’étude pharmacologique, permettant une détection spécifique et extrêmement sensible de la molécule d’intérêt dans des matrices biologiques complexes. Cependant l’utilisation de la radioactivité présente de nombreux inconvénients, principalement en termes de sécurité pour les utilisateurs et problématiques environnementales induites par le stockage de déchets radioactifs. Au regard de ces limitations, des technologies alternatives ont été développées principalement basées sur une détection de fluorescence. Toutefois, l’incorporation de groupements encombrants tels que les fluorophores peut potentiellement perturber les propriétés physico-chimiques de la molécule et ainsi altérer son affinité envers le récepteur, ce qui limite l’application de ce type de stratégie pour les ligands de faible poids moléculaire. Dans ce contexte, nous souhaitons développer une méthodologie alternative pour quantifier les interactions récepteur-ligands. La spectrométrie de masse présente de remarquables capacités en termes de sensibilité et de spécificité d’analyse. Parmi les technologies existantes, l’ICP-MS est une technique extrêmement sensible permettant la quantification absolue d’hétéroéléments indépendamment de la matrice dans laquelle se trouve l’échantillon. Cette technique associée à un marquage approprié de la molécule d’intérêt a donc été évaluée. Le sélénium a été sélectionné comme un bon compromis entre la réponse obtenue en ICP-MS et la possibilité d’introduire ce marqueur au sein de la molécule d’intérêt selon des protocoles de chimie conventionnelle, sans perturbation de l’affinité pour le récepteur. La preuve de concept a été illustrée sur le récepteur à la vasopressine V1A impliquant des ligands de nature peptidique. Différentes stratégies ont été appliquées pour la conception de ligands marqués au sélénium basées sur la substitution d’acides aminés par leurs analogues séléniés (ex : remplacement de la cystéine (Cys) par la sélénocystéine (Sec) et de la proline (Pro) par la sélénazolidine (Sez)) ainsi que la dérivatisation en position N-terminale du peptide avec une petite molécule organique. La méthodologie analytique par ICP-MS a été développée de manière à obtenir une mesure du sélénium à la fois sensible et fiable. La forte proportion de sels inorganiques contenus dans la matrice pharmacologique a nécessité le recours à une séparation chromatographique et à une cellule de collision en amont de la détection par ICP-MS. Le protocole pharmacologique a également été adapté aux exigences analytiques. Ces modifications ont notamment porté sur la récupération de l’échantillon pour procéder à son injection ainsi que sur la quantité de cellules utilisées. La robustesse des expériences pharmacologiques ainsi conçues a été évaluée par la mesure de la constante d’affinité (Ki) de ligands caractéristiques du récepteur V1A présentant des affinités élevées et faibles pour ce dernier. Les résultats obtenus ont présenté une très bonne corrélation avec les valeurs de référence indiquées dans la littérature, permettant ainsi de valider la preuve de concept de cette méthodologie et de proposer une alternative viable au marquage radioactif. / Measuring interactions between a drug candidate and its specific target constitutes a parameter of upmost importance in drug discovery process. Because of its robustness and very high sensitivity, radio-isotopic labeling represents up to now the reference method for these pharmacological studies. However, the use of radioactivity confers several constraints about security, health hazards and environmental issues involved by radioactive waste storage. Regarding such limitations, non-radioactive technologies have been developed principally based on fluorescence detection. But the cost of such assay as well as the fact that incorporation of a bulky fluorescent block can affect the affinity for small ligand limit their use. In this context, we aim to develop a new methodology to quantify receptor-ligands interactions. Mass spectrometry (MS) presents very interesting features in terms of detection sensitivity and specificity, making this technique a challenging analytical tool to replace radioactivity and fluorescence measurements commonly used in pharmacology. Among all MS technologies, the capacity of inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to provide metallic and hetero elements absolute quantification, whatever the nature of the sample medium, prompted us to investigate this technique in combination with an appropriate labeling of the molecule of interest. Selenium was selected as a good compromise between ICP-MS response and chemical tagging ability through the creation of covalent bonds using conventional organic sulfur chemistry without disturbance of the affinity toward targeted receptor. Proof of concept was illustrated on the vasopressin receptor (V1A), a GPCR involved in vasoconstriction and emotional behavior and implying peptide as native ligand. Different strategies were applied to design selenium labeled peptides relying in either conventional amino acid substitution by corresponding selenium containing residue into peptide sequence such as cysteine (Cys) replacement by selenocysteine (Sec) as well as proline (Pro) by selenazolidine (Sez), or N-terminal peptide derivatization with a selenium containing small organic entity. ICP-MS analytical methodology was carefully investigated to provide sensitive and reliable selenium signal measurement. High inorganic salts contents of pharmacological buffer along with polyatomic interferences from plasma interfering selenium detection necessitate chromatographic separation and collision reaction cell equipment before ICP-MS detection. The pharmacological protocol was also adapted to the analytical requirements, in particular quantity of cells and sample handling. Robustness of the designed competitive binding assay was evaluated through the affinity constant (Ki) measurement of several known V1A-R ligands exhibiting either high or poor affinity for the receptor. Experimental values were strongly correlated to literature data, enabling to validate the proof of concept of such methodology and to propose a suitable alternative to radioactive labeling.

Déterminer les protéines cibles de l’uranium est un enjeu majeur dans la détermination de la toxicité de ce métal et la conception d’agents décorporants. Dans ce contexte, ce travail étudie les possibilités offertes par le couplage CE-ICP/MS dans la détection de complexes protéine-uranium. Par des conditions de séparation judicieusement choisies, il est possible d’obtenir une distribution de l’uranium dans des échantillons de complexité moyenne. Cette approche a été validée sur des protéines cibles connues (seules ou en mélange) pour lesquelles les constantes d’équilibre apparentes ont été déterminées avec une justesse comparable à celle des méthodes biophysiques. L’intérêt de ce couplage a été illustré au travers de diverses applications. Ainsi l’analyse directe de sérum a confirmé l’implication forte de la fétuine, une glycoprotéine humaine, dans le devenir de l’uranium dans le sang. De plus, l’intégration ce couplage dans une approche multi-techniques (ICP/MS, DLS, CE-ICP/MS) a permis d’étudier l’influence de l’uranium dans la formation de particules de calciprotéines et fournit la preuve du maintien de l’interaction protéine-uranium dans de tels édifices. / Identification of proteins targeted by uranium is of major concern in the determination of uranium toxicity and the development of decorporation agents. In this study, we examine the capabilities offered by hyphenated CE - ICP/MS for the detection of protein-uranium complexes. With judicious separation conditions, it is possible to obtain the uranium distribution in samples of moderate complexity. This approach was validated by using known proteins targeted by uranium (individually or in simple mixtures). Apparent equilibrium constants were determined with an accuracy similar to the ones obtained by biophysical methods. The interest of using this hyphenation was illustrated through diverse applications. The direct analysis of human serum confirmed the strong involvement of fetuin, a human glycoprotein, in the uranium blood distribution. Last but not least, the integration of this hyphenation into a multi-techniques approach (ICP/MS, DLS, CE-ICP/MS) allowed evaluating the influence of uranium on the formation of calciprotein particles and provided a proof of the preservation of protein-uranium complexes in such conditions.

No description available.

Dans le cadre de la surveillance environnementale, le devenir du plutonium au sein des différents milieux et en particulier au sein des eaux de surface est important notamment en raison de sa radiotoxicité. Dans ces milieux, la forme pentavalente du plutonium est prédominante et est fortement complexée par les carbonates. Le couplage EC-ICP-MS, technique ayant déjà été éprouvée pour la spéciation des actinides, a été retenu pour déterminer les constantes thermodynamiques associées à la formation de ces complexes.L’étude menée sur le plutonium (VI) a permis d’obtenir des constantes de stabilité à 25°C. A partir de ces valeurs, les coefficients d’interaction spécifique ont été ré-évalués par rapport à celles reportées par l’AEN. Le diagramme de spéciation en solution du Pu(VI) en présence d’ions carbonate a été établi. Il suggère la complexation de la forme plutonyle par les ions carbonate dès pH=3.Les travaux réalisés sur les actinides (V) (Np et Pu) ont permis de déterminer à la fois les constantes de stabilité des complexes carbonates puis les enthalpies et entropies molaires de réaction à partir de l’étude menée en température. Expérimentalement, l’analogie entre le neptunium et le plutonium a été confirmée. Afin de mieux comprendre le comportement du plutonium au sein d’eaux de surface, la détermination des enthalpies et entropies a été nécessaire. Les diagrammes de spéciation établis à partir de ces données montrent une quasi similarité dans la répartition chimique des espèces du plutonium pentavalent sans considération de la localisation de l’eau de surface analysée. / In the field of environmental control, the behavior of plutonium in various media and particularly in surface waters is relevant taking into account its radiotoxicity. Carbonate ions widely present in these media mainly complex pentavalent plutonium. In this field, CE-ICP-MS coupling, which was already used for actinides speciation, has been considered for the determination of thermodynamic constants associated to plutonium carbonate complexes.The study developed on plutonium (VI) allowed determining the stability constants at 25°C. From these values, the specific interaction coefficients based on the values recommended by the NEA have been reevaluated. The speciation diagram of Pu(VI) in aqueous carbonate solution has been established and shows the complexation of the plutonyl form by carbonates complex beyond pH=3.The works realized on the complexation of actinides (V) (Np and Pu) by carbonate ions at different temperatures allowed determining both the stability constants and the molar enthalpies and entropies of reaction. Experimentally, the analogy between neptunium and plutonium has been observed and allowed the determination of values which are more precise and consistent with those of the literature. For a better understanding of the plutonium behavior in surface waters, the determination of enthalpies and entropies has been necessary. The speciation diagrams established from these values show a near similarity in the chemical distribution of plutonium species without any further consideration of the analyzed surface water location.

Introduction 61Cu (T1/2 = 3.33 hr, Eβ= 1.22 MeV, 61.4 %) is an attractive isotope for positron emission tomography (PET) radiopharmaceutical agents such as ATSM and PTSM. Various separation processes have been reported for the production of 61Cu on a medium cyclotron using 13–22 MeV protons on natural and enriched 64Zn target materials [1,2]. This work, investigates production of 61Cu using both natural and enriched 64Zn targets and its separation. Three types of resins were used to assess for their efficiency and speed to separate the desired 61Cu from the 66,67,68Ga and 64Zn and for the recycling of 64Zn target material. The effective specific activity of purified 61Cu, was determined by ICP-MS and its titration with various polyaza and polycarboxylate complexing ligands. Material and Methods 1. Production and Separation Targets were irradiated by proton beam of IBA cyclotron 18/18MeV via the 64Zn(p,α) 61Cu and natZn(p,x) 61Cu reactions using an enriched 64Zn foil(15×15×0.05mm, ~50 mg) and natural foil (diameter 25 mm, 0.05 mm,~ 60 mg). Thirty minute irradiations were conducted with incident proton energies between 11.7–12.0 MeV and beam currents of 20 and 40 µA. Irradiated Zn targets were dissolved in 8M HCl at 150 oC then evaporated to dryness. Trace water to the resultant residue (twice) and resultant solutions evaporated to dryness. The residue was re-dissolved in 2ml of 0.01M HCl before loading onto a Cu-resin column (FIG. 1) Zn and Ga isotopes were collectively eluted using 30 ml of 0.01M HCl. The Cu was then removed using 1.5 ml of 8M HCl and passed directly onto a cation exchange followed by an anion exchange column. An additional 3 ml of 8M HCl was used to rinse the cation exchange column and ensure quantitatively removal of Cu (II) ions. The Cu was finally eluted from the anion exchange column using 3 ml of 2M HCl. The Cu solution was heated up at 150 oC until evaporated to dryness and 61Cu final product dissolved in 400–800 μL of 0.01M HCl. 2. Specific activity of 61Cu The specific activity (GBq/µmol) of the purified 61Cu was determined by ICP-MS and compared with that determined using dota, nota and di-amsar complexing ligands. For each 61Cu production run aliquot of final solution (100 µL) was left to decay before dilut-ing to 10 mL with 10% HNO3. Decayed samples were sent to ChemCentre (Curtin University) for ICP-MS analysis. Each sample was analysed for Cu, Al, Ca, Co, Fe, Ga, Ni, Si, and Zn, which are known to compete with Cu2+ for ligand complexation. Effective specific activity of the 61Cu was deter-mined by titrating various known concentration of ligands with 61Cu solution. The method is detailed in the literature [3]. Briefly, varying concentrations of each ligand was prepared in 0.1M sodium acetate buffer pH 6.5 to a total volume 20 µL. Fixed concentration of diluted 61Cu (0.01M HCl) in 10 µL was added to each ligand solution. The mixtures were vortexed then left to incubate at the room temperature for 30 mins. Two uL aliquots were withdrawn (in triplicate) from each reaction mixture and spot-ted on ITLC –SA. [Mobile phase: 0.1M NaCl: 0.1M EDTA (9:1) for Cu2+ and diamsar mixtures: Rf <0.2 Cu-diamsar; Rf > 0.8 free Cu2+ and 0.1M sodium acetate pH 4.5: H2O: MeOH: ammonium hydroxide (20:18:2:1 v/v) for Cu2+ dota and nota mixtures: Rf >0.8 Cu-dota and Cu-nota Rf < 0.2 free Cu2+]. Complexation of the 61Cu with each ligand was complete within 30 mins at room temperature. Concentration of Cu2+ was deter-mined from the 50% labelling efficiency. Results and Conclusion 1. Production and Separation The radioisotopes production from natZn target must be minimized by the optimum proton energy to reduce a radiation dose in the final product. The excitation functions of 66,67,68Ga ,65Zn and 61Cu are shown in FIG. 2. Proton beam energy of 11.7 MeV was used for both Zn targets to minimise the production of Ga isotopes and prevent formation of 65Zn. For the enriched 64Zn target (99.30%) higher proton energy could be used for the production of 61Cu allowing for increased yields and reduce radio contaminants. Previously, we used anion and cation exchange resin as described in the literature to separate the 61Cu [1]. Unfortunately the literature method was too long (up to 3 hours) and requiring high concentration of HCl and long evaporation times compromising achievable yields [4]. Thieme S. et al., 2013 [2] reported the successful use of Cu-resin for the separation of Cu radioisotopes and it was of interest to the current work to test this material for the separation of 61Cu in our hands. A cation, anion exchange and Cu-resin were combined into closed system to separate the 61Cu within 30 mins (FIG. 1). The system is designed to contain the transfer of solutions be-tween each column using simple plunger to force solution through and between each column. This system afforded an easy, reliable and fast separation of 61Cu that could be completed within 30 min. 2. Specific activity The specific activity of 61Cu was determined using ICP-MS and by titration with three ligands is summarized in TABLE 1. The ICP-MS data show values ranging from 9.2 to 32.4 GBq/μmol for 8 production runs. Specific activity determine using nota and dota were in all cases lower than the ICP MS data indicating some interference from the other metal ion contaminates such as Fe(ii/Iii), Ni (II), Ca (II), Zn (II), Ga (III). The specific activity determine using diamsar, which is known to be highly selective for Cu(II) (and Zn(II) and Fe(III)) in the presence of alkali and alkaline earth ions gave values significantly higher effective specific activity than that obtained using ICP MS. Variations in values can be explained by presence of contaminating metal ions.

[pt] O exame de mineralograma capilar fornece as concentrações de elementos tóxicos e essenciais no cabelo. O uso de produtos capilares, além de poderem representar uma fonte de exposição, é possível que causem alterações na composição mineral do cabelo. Neste trabalho, amostras de cabelo natural foram submetidas a tratamentos com diferentes tinturas e, posteriormente, analisadas seguindo a metodologia pré-estabelecida para determinação multielementar por espectrometria de massas com plasma indutivamente acoplado (ICP-MS). A composição elementar do cabelo humano natural foi comparada com as determinadas nas mesmas amostras de cabelo submetidas a tratamentos com diferentes tintas. Utilizando o teste estatístico Kruskal-Wallis, foi possível identificar diferenças significativas (p < 0,05) para os elementos Na, K e Mg, cujas concentrações aumentaram (de 100 a 5000x) após o uso das tinturas permanentes e semipermantes, enquanto para os cabelos que foram submetidos a tratamentos com corantes naturais isso não foi observado. Alguns elementos como Al, Fe, P tiveram decréscimo em suas concentrações (de 20 a 40%) após o uso desses tratamentos. Diante disso, foi possível determinar que alguns elementos são transferidos ou removidos do cabelo após o uso de determinados produtos, confirmando que tratamentos estéticos podem interferir nos resultados do exame do mineralograma capilar, devendo ser avaliada a necessidade da realização do mesmo em pacientes com cabelo tingido ou a possibilidade de aguardar por, pelo menos, 3 meses sem o uso de tratamentos permanentes antes da coleta da amostra para realização do exame. / [en] The hair mineral analysis test reports the concentrations of toxics and essential elements inside the hair structure. The utilization of hair care products, in addition to being able to represent an exposure source, also can be responsible for certain changes in the mineral composition of the hair. In present work, natural hair samples were treated with different dyes and, posteriorly, studied following the pre-established protocol for multi-element analysis by means of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Hence, the element compositions of natural human hair after different treatments were compared. With the help of the Kruskal-Wallis statistical test, it was possible to identify significant differences (p < 0.05) for the elements, such as Na, K and Mg. Their concentrations increased from 100 to 5000x after the use of permanent and semipermanent dyes, while in the case of the hair samples treated with the natural dye no significant difference was observed. The concentrations of some elements, such as Al, Fe, P decreased (from 20 to 40%) after the respective treatments. Therefore, it was established that some elements are transferred or removed from the hair after the use of certain products, confirming that aesthetic treatments can interfere the results of the hair mineral analysis test. It reasons testing in patients with dyed hair or the possibility of waiting for about 3 months without the use of permanent treatments before sample collection for the analysis.

Studies of the interaction of the relevant metal, metalloid or nanoparticulate species with biological systems are underpinned by the provision of reliable information about chemical composition of the relevant materials. Often, no methods of chemical analysis are available. The work described in this dissertation centers on developing methods to help with studies for a variety of analytes and samples. A method was developed for the determination of 11 trace elements (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Pb, Ti, and Zn) in human breast milk and infant formulas by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) following microwave-assisted digestion. A method was established for the determination of trace elements, with an emphasis on titanium as titanium dioxide, in snack foods and consumer products. The interactions of some dissolved metals, including rare earth elements, and metallo-nanoparticles (silver, gold, titanium dioxide, aluminum oxide, and iron) with aquatic plants were studied. After exposure in a variety of mesocosms, the partitioning of the elemental species between various compartments was quantified by ICP-MS and ICP-OES following microwave-assisted digestion. An ICP mass spectrometry (MS) method has also been developed to quantify the uptake of gold and silver nanoparticles by C. elegans. Uptake of gold nanoparticles was size dependent, suggesting increased ingestion efficiency with increased particle diameter. The feasibility of discriminating between suspended TiO2 nanoparticles and dissolved titanium by the analysis of the rapid transient signal events obtained from the ICP-MS instrument operated in a rapid response mode was also developed. Data handling parameters were established that allowed a distinction in the signals for nanoparticulate and standard solutions. Spikes in the signal were defined by distinct parameters using the mean and standard deviation, where a spike in the signal was defined as a signal > + ks (k =3). This approach however did lead to a statistical difference in the spike signal events for solutions and nanosuspensions.

A method was developed for the determination of total arsenic in rice grain by microwave-assisted digestion inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Standard calibration solutions were matrix-matched with respect to acid concentration and carbon content post-digest. The importance of eliminating the drying step during sample preparation procedures was investigated. The method was validated with spikes containing standard arsenate solutions into the rice matrix, and with certified reference material SRM1568a (rice flour) from NIST. The method was successfully applied to a commercially available rice sample. Four arsenic species [arsenate (As(V)), arsenite (As(III)), dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) and monomethylarsonic acid (MMA)] were extracted from rice grains by microwave-assisted extraction and separated with high performance liquid chromatography inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The method includes a novel sample clean-up step involving a dialysis procedure to decrease the amount of large starch molecules in the injection solution, in order to minimize poor resolution of chromatographic peaks and maximize column life. The method was validated with spikes of standard arsenic solutions, added to the rice matrix before the extraction procedure. Literature reference values for arsenic species quantification in SRM1568a (rice flour) were also compared. This method was successfully applied to a commercially available rice sample. A study into improvements in reverse phase-HPLC separations of arsenic species was conducted. For the first time, a Sunfire C8 column from Waters (Milford, CT) was employed for the separation of arsenic species in rice extracts. This column was compared to a Symmetry C8 column with respect to total elution time, detection limits, interference effects, and column life, and evaluated with respect to peak resolution, shifts in retention times, and peak symmetry.