A simple, small size, and low cost sensor based on a Deferoxamine Self Assembled Monolayer (DFO-SAM) and Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) transduction, in connection with a Plastic Optical Fiber (POF), has been developed for the selective detection of Fe(III). DFO-SAM sensors based on appropriate electrochemical techniques can be frequently found in the scientific literature. In this work, we present the first example of a DFO-SAM sensor based on SPR in an optical fiber. The SPR sensing platform was realized by removing the cladding of a plastic optical fiber along half the circumference, spin coating a buffer of Microposit S1813 photoresist on the exposed core, and finally sputtering a thin gold film. The hydroxamate siderophore deferoxamine (DFO), having high binding affinity for Fe(III), is then used in its immobilized form, as self-assembled monolayer on the gold layer surface of the POF sensor. The results showed that the DFO-SAM-POF-sensor was able to sense the formation of the Fe(III)/DFO complex in the range of concentrations between 1 μm and 50 μm with a linearity range from 0 to 30 μm of Fe(III). The selectivity of the sensor was also proved by interference tests.
The development of a sensor based on the functionalization of common filter paper with deferoxamine (DFO) is proposed with the prospect to produce a solid phase for iron(III) and vanadium(V) sensing. The main features of this sensor are the simplicity of operation, good sensitivity and feasible applicability to real samples without the need of pre-treatment procedures. DFO was selected not only for it is easily anchored to the solid support, but also because it forms colored complexes with iron(III) and vanadium(V); hence, the developing of a simple colorimetric sensor can be considered. In particular, an innovative and economic way to perform colorimetric measurements using a desktop scanner is described. A complete characterization of the functionalized material is also reported.
The importance of polymeric nanocarriers in the field of drug delivery is ever-increasing, and the accurate characterization of their properties is paramount to understand and predict their behavior. Asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation (AF4) is a fractionation technique that has gained considerable attention for its gentle separation conditions, broad working range, and versatility. AF4 can be hyphenated to a plurality of concentration and size detectors, thus permitting the analysis of the multifunctionality of nanomaterials. Despite this potential, the practical information that can be retrieved by AF4 and its possible applications are still rather unfamiliar to the pharmaceutical scientist. This review was conceived as a primer that clearly states the “do’s and don’ts” about AF4 applied to the characterization of polymeric nanocarriers. Aside from size characterization, AF4 can be beneficial during formulation optimization, for drug loading and drug release determination and for the study of interactions among biomaterials. It will focus mainly on the advances made in the last 5 years, as well as indicating the problematics on the consensus, which have not been reached yet. Methodological recommendations for several case studies will be also included.
Graphical abstract
The variation over time of free Zn 2+ ion concentration in stirred dispersions of ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) prepared in synthetic saliva at pH 6.80 and 37º C was followed in situ (without solid-liquid separation step) with the electroanalytical technique AGNES (Absence of Gradients and Nernstian Equilibrium Stripping). At these conditions, ZnO NPs are chemically unstable due to their reaction with phosphates. The initial stage of transformation (around 5-10 h) involves the formation of a metastable solid (presumably ZnHPO4), which later evolves into the more stable hopeite phase. The overall decay rate of ZnO NPs is significantly reduced in comparison with phosphate-free background solutions of the same ionic strength and pH. The effective equilibrium solubilities of ZnO (0.29-0.47 mg•L-1), as well as conditional excess-ligand stability constants and fractional distributions of soluble Zn species were determined in absence and presence of organic components. The results were compared with the conventional ultrafiltration and inductively coupled plasmamass spectrometry (UF-ICP-MS) methodology. AGNES proves to be advantageous in terms of speed, reproducibility and access to speciation information.
The time-evolution of Cd 2+ ion sorption by Chelex 100 resin was studied in batch experiments as a function of time, pH, ionic strength, stirring rate, mass of resin and initial metal ion concentration. In the experimental conditions, the amount of resin sites are in excess with respect to the amount of metal ion, leading to extensive depletion of intraparticle diffusion control, it proves to be accurate in a wider range of values of the mass transfer Biot number and solution/resin metal ratios.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.