Development of monoclonal antibodies against pirimiphos-methyl and their application to IC-ELISA

To detect the organophosphorus (OP) pesticide pirimiphos-methyl in grain samples, a monoclonal antibody-based indirect competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (IC-ELISA) was developed and optimized. By the active esters method, pirimiphos-methyl hapten A was conjugated to keyhole limpet hemocyanin to be used as the immunogen for the production of monoclonal antibodies, and pirimiphos-methyl hapten B was conjugated to ovalbumin to be used as coating antigen. By using the monoclonal antibody and the coating antigen, an IC-ELISA has been developed. Under the established optimized conditions, the IC-ELISA showed an IC50 of 4.2 ng/mL with a detection limit of 0.07 ng/mL. The IC-ELISA showed negligible cross-reactivity with other OP pesticides except with pirimiphos-ethyl. Recoveries of pirimiphos-methyl from spiked grain samples ranged from 83 to 96%.     

Understanding the accumulation features of POPs in squid from the offshore waters of southeast Korea

In this study we investigated the current contamination status and accumulation features of POPs in Korean offshore waters using Japanese common squid as a biomonitoring organism. Concentrations of organochlorine compounds (OCs), such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane and its metabolites (DDTs), chlordane compounds (CHLs), and hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) were determined in different organs of squid of both sexes and of various sizes caught in the offshore waters of southeast Korea in July and October, 2005. Most of the compounds showed their highest concentrations in liver among the organs analyzed. The concentrations of PCBs, DDTs, CHLs and HCHs in liver were in the ranges of 116–206 ng/g (mean: 146), 158–325 ng/g (238), 20.6–37.3 ng/g (28.2), and 1.68–12.3 ng/g (7.79) on a dry weight basis, respectively. There was no relationship between squid size and OC concentrations, while the levels of all of the compounds were significantly correlated with lipid content. Due to its relatively high lipid content, the concentration of OCs in squid liver was higher than other organs of the squid. Therefore, OCs in female squid may be redistributed from the liver to the gonad. These results showed that male squid liver is a useful organ for monitoring OCs in Korean offshore waters, regardless of its size.     

Electrochromic nanocrystal quantum dots

Incorporating nanocrystals into future electronic or optoelectronic devices will require a means of controlling charge-injection processes and an understanding of how the injected charges affect the properties of nanocrystals. We show that the optical properties of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystal quantum dots can be tuned by an electrochemical potential. The injection of electrons into the quantum-confined states of the nanocrystal leads to an electrochromic response, including a strong, size-tunable, midinfrared absorption corresponding to an intraband transition, a bleach of the visible interband exciton transitions, and a quench of the narrow band-edge photoluminescence.     

Rapid NMR method for the quantification of organic compounds in thin stillage

Thin stillage contains organic and inorganic compounds, some of which may be valuable fermentation coproducts. This study describes a thorough analysis of the major solutes present in thin stillage as revealed by NMR and HPLC. The concentration of charged and neutral organic compounds in thin stillage was determined by excitation sculpting NMR methods (double pulse field gradient spin echo). Compounds identified by NMR included isopropanol, ethanol, lactic acid, 1,3-propanediol, acetic acid, succinic acid, glycerophosphorylcholine, betaine, glycerol, and 2-phenylethanol. The concentrations of lactic and acetic acid determined with NMR were comparable to those determined using HPLC. HPLC and NMR were complementary, as more compounds were identified using both methods. NMR analysis revealed that stillage contained the nitrogenous organic compounds betaine and glycerophosphorylcholine, which contributed as much as 24% of the nitrogen present in the stillage. These compounds were not observed by HPLC analysis.     

Parvalbumin‐immunoreactive cells in the olfactory bulb of the pigeon: Comparison with the rat

The olfactory bulb (OB) shows special characteristics in its phylogenetic cortical structure and synaptic pattern. In the OB, gamma‐aminobutyric acid (GABA), as an inhibitory neurotransmitter, is secreted from GABAergic neurons which contain parvalbumin (a calcium‐binding protein). Many studies on the distribution of parvalbumin‐immunoreactive neurons in the rodent OB have been published but poorly reported in the avian OB. Therefore, in this study, we compared the structure of the OB and distribution of parvalbumin‐immunoreactive neurons in the OB between the rat and pigeon using cresyl violet staining and immunohistochemistry for parvalbumin, respectively. Fundamentally, the pigeon OB showed layers like those of the rat OB; however, some layers were not clear like in the rat OB. Parvalbumin‐immunoreactive neurons in the pigeon OB were predominantly distributed in the external plexiform layer like that in the rat OB; however, the neurons did not have long processes like those in the rat. Furthermore, parvalbumin‐immunoreactive fibres were abundant in some layers; this finding was not shown in the rat OB. In brief, parvalbumin‐immunoreactive neurons were found like those in the rat OB; however, parvalbumin‐immunoreactive fibres were significantly abundant in the pigeon OB compared to those in the rat OB.     

Analysis of fluoroquinolone residues in edible chicken tissues using supercritical fluid extraction

We evaluated a procedure that uses high-performance liquid chromatography to determine the levels of four fluoroquinolones (ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, norfloxacin, and ofloxacin) remaining in chicken breast muscle, liver, and kidneys after the analytes are extracted using supercritical fluid extraction (SFE). These antimicrobial fluoroquinolones were extracted by SFE using supercritical CO2 containing 30% (v/v) methanol. The recovery, limit of detection, accuracy, and precision of this method were evaluated on the basis of fortified matrices at concentrations of 25 to 250 microg/kg. The method is validated and shown to be linear in the range of 2.5-50 microg/kg. Spike recoveries for muscle, liver and kidney samples prepared at 4 spiking levels were ranged from 56.6-104.3%, 51.2-98.4% and 62.2-97.8%, respectively. The coefficient of variation (CV) for recovery as a measure of relative variability was between 3% and 13%, and the relative standard deviation (RSD) was < 20%. The limits of quantitation (LOQ) were 10 microg/kg for enrofloxacin, 12.5 microg/kg each for ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin and 25 microg/kg for ofloxacin; these values were lower than the maximum residue levels (MRLs) authorized by the European Community. The 4 compounds were evaluated simultaneously, and the method was shown to be applicable for analyzing their residues in edible chicken tissues.     

The Application of Mucoadhesive Chitosan Nanoparticles in Nasal Drug Delivery

Mucosal delivery of antigens can induce both humoral and cellular immune responses. Particularly, the nasal cavity is a strongly inductive site for mucosal immunity among several administration routes, as it is generally the first point of contact for inhaled antigens. However, the delivery of antigens to the nasal cavity has some disadvantages such as rapid clearance and disposition of inhaled materials. For these reasons, remarkable efforts have been made to develop antigen delivery systems which suit the nasal route. The use of nanoparticles as delivery vehicles enables protection of the antigen from degradation and sustains the release of the loaded antigen, eventually resulting in improved vaccine and/or drug efficacy. Chitosan, which exhibits low toxicity, biodegradability, good cost performance, and strong mucoadhesive properties, is a useful material for nanoparticles. The present review provides an overview of the mucosal immune response induced by nanoparticles, recent advances in the use of nanoparticles, and nasal delivery systems with chitosan nanoparticles.     

Functional Recombinants Designed from a Fetuin/Asialofetuin-Specific Marine Algal Lectin,Rhodobindin

Plant lectins have attracted much attention for biomedical applications including targeted drug delivery system and therapy against tumors and microbial infections. The main problem of using lectins as a biomedical tool is a batch-to-batch variation in isoforms content. The production of lectins using recombination tools has the advantage of obtaining high amounts of proteins with more precise properties, but there are only a handful of functional recombinant lectins presently available. A fetuin/asialo-fetuin specific lectin, Rhodobindin, has unique tandem repeats structure which makes it useful in exploiting for recombinant lectin. We developed three functional recombinant lectins using E. coli expression system: one from full cDNA sequence and two from fragmentary sequences of Rhodobindin. Hemagglutinating activity and solubility of the recombinant lectins were highest at OD 0.7 cell concentration at 20 °C. The optimized process developed in this study was suitable for the quality-controlled production of high amounts of soluble recombinant lectins.