This work details the study of the redox behavior of the drugs cyclobenzaprine (CBP), amitriptyline (AMP) and nortriptyline (NOR) through voltammetric methods and computational chemistry. Results obtained in this study show that the amine moiety of each compound is more likely to undergo oxidation at 1a at Ep1a ≈ 0.69, 0.79, 0.93 V (vs. Ag/AgCl/KClsat) for CBP, AMP and NOR, respectively. Moreover, CBP presented a second peak, 2a at Ep2a ≈ 0.98 V (vs. Ag/AgCl/KClsat) at pH 7.0. Furthermore, the electronic structure calculation results corroborate the electrochemical assays regarding the HOMO energies of the lowest energy conformers of each molecule. The mechanism for each anodic process is proposed according to electroanalytical and computational chemistry findings, which show evidence that the methods herein employed may be a valuable alternative to study the redox behavior of structurally similar drugs.
Diclofenac (DIC) is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug of wide use around the world. Electroanalytical methods display a high analytical potential for application in pharmaceutical samples but the drawbacks concerning electrode fouling and reproducibility are of major concern. Henceforth, the aim of this work was to propose the use of alternative low-cost carbon black (CB) and ionic liquid (IL) matrix to modify the surface of pencil graphite electrodes (PGE) in order to quantify DIC in raw materials, intermediates, and final products, as well as in stability assays of tablets. The proposed method using CB+IL/PGE displayed good recovery (99.4%) as well as limits of detection (LOD) of 0.08 µmol L-1 and limits of quantification (LOQ) of 0.28 µmol L−1. CB+IL/PGE response was five times greater than the unmodified PGE. CB+IL-PGE stands as an interesting alternative for DIC assessment in different pharmaceutical samples.
Studies have indicated the capacity of basidiomycetes to degrade recalcitrant organopollutants. However, the age of the fungal inoculum to obtain a more effective degradation has not been defined. The criterion used is total colonization of the substrate. Psilocybe castanella CCB444 and Lentinus crinitus CCB274 have been evaluated in soils containing hexachlorobenzene. In the present study, the physiological conditions of the fungal inocula were characterized on solid substrate (sugarcane bagasse, starch and soy flour). Colonization of the substrate, loss of organic matter, pH variation, organic carbon, total nitrogen, fungal biomass and enzymatic activity were evaluated over 30 days of incubation. Colonization of the substrate was almost complete after 20 days for both species, with about 90% of organic matter remaining on the substrates. The pH continued to be acid during incubation. The highest enzymatic production was observed at 10 days for L. crinitus and at 5 days for P. castanella. The fungi presented growth up to 30 days. The C/N ratio of the inocula showed little variation. The use among 10 and 15-day-old inoculum is adequate since sufficient nutrients are left to guarantee survival of the fungus, vigorous colonization of the substrate, a growing biomass and an active enzymatic system, thus permitting fungal growth in soil.
Facing the growing demand for water, discussions on environmental sustainability and conservation of this resource have become increasingly important. Among the possibilities for water conservation, air conditioning systems have potential applicability because, during their operation, water is generated via the condensation of air humidity, which is normally discarded. Thus, the objective of this work was to evaluate the water released by air conditioning equipment (condensed water) installed in the Laboratory of Water Analysis (LAnA) qualitatively and quantitatively, in order to verify its potential for use in the laboratory itself. For this, the quality of the water produced by three air conditioners was compared water quality parameters found in the literature, as well as with water produced by a distiller and an ultra-purifier, both used in the LAnA. Water quality was evaluated using physicochemical parameters (i.e. pH, electrical conductivity, resistivity, alkalinity, turbidity, apparent color and hardness) and microbiological parameters (i.e. total coliforms, Escherichia coli and heterotrophic bacteria). The average water flow produced by the three monitored air conditioners was 3.08 L/hour, which is higher than the daily consumption by the LAnA, indicating that its use would be quantitatively propitious. The physicochemical and microbiological analyses found that, condensed water can be used in the routine activities of LAnA. However, for its use as reagent-grade water, a prior treatment would be necessary, mainly due to the presence of heterotrophic bacteria.
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