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The cell wall O-polysaccharides of pathogenic Brucella species are homopolymers of the rare sugar 4,6-dideoxy-4-formamido-α-D-mannopyranose. Despite the apparent simplicity of the polysaccharide it appears to be a "block copolymer" composed of A and M polysaccharide sequences expressed as a single molecule. The simultaneous presence of both in the cell wall has complicated the understanding of the molecular recognition of these antigens by antibodies present in the serum of infected animals and humans and by monoclonal antibodies. Since presumptive diagnosis of brucellosis, a serious disease in domestic livestock, wild animals, and humans, is based on detection of these antibodies it is important to separate the two antigenic epitopes, one of which is also found in other bacteria. Chemical synthesis provides the only means to achieve this outcome. A series of six oligosaccharides from di to hexasaccharides 1-6 were synthesized and conjugated to proteins to provide glycoconjugate antigens and conjugate vaccines. These chemically defined antigens identified the M antigenic determinant and provided a structural basis for understanding the fine specificity of monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies that bind the M antigen. This resulted in the discovery of a disaccharide that shows considerable potential as an unambiguous diagnostic antigen for detecting brucellosis in humans and animals and two hexasaccharide conjugate vaccine candidates that produce high levels of O-polysaccharide specific antibodies in mice.

A multi-residue method was developed and validated for the quantitation and confirmation of avermectins and moxidectin residues in bovine liver. Target analytes were extracted from liver homogenate using C8 solid phase cartridges, chromatographed under basic pH conditions in order to promote the formation of analyte anions, and detected by ion-trap mass spectrometry (MS) in negative ion mode using an atmospheric pressure chemical ionization interface (APCI). The method provided detection capabilities (CC beta, where beta = 0.05) for eprinomectin, abamectin, doramectin, moxidectin and ivermectin of 3.1, 3.2, 2.2, 4.0 and 3.2 ng g-1 liver respectively, well below their respective maximum residue limits (MRLs). The critical concentrations for MRL compliance (CC alpha, where alpha = 0.01) were 840, 28, 130, 130 and 130 ng g-1 respectively. Analysis of liver fortified at the appropriate MRLs gave recoveries (% +/- RSD) of 70.9 +/- 11.6 (n = 14), 69.1 +/- 3.9 (n = 13), 65.9 +/- 6.4 (n = 19), 69.7 +/- 9.3 (n = 19) and 73.2 +/- 10.5 (n = 19), respectively, for each analyte. Calibration curves fitted a second order polynomial function (R2 > or = 0.9978) over a wide range of concentrations (0 to 10,000 ng ml-1). The detection of two daughter-ions for each analyte allowed for quantitation and the confirmation of identity. The method is suitable for application in European Union statutory veterinary drug residue surveillance programmes, since it fulfills appropriate analytical criteria, and has the particular advantage of enabling high throughput multi-residue quantitation and confirmation of the target analytes.