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Chile peppers (Capsicum annuum L.) are good sources of vitamins and minerals that can be included in the diet to mitigate nutritional deficiencies. Metabolomics examines the metabolites involved in biological pathways to understand the genes related to complex phenotypes such as the nutritional quality traits. The current study surveys the different metabolites present in jalapeño ('NuMex Pumpkin Spice') and serrano ('NuMex LotaLutein') type chile peppers grown in New Mexico using a widely targeted metabolomics approach, with the 'NuMex LotaLutein' as control. A total of 1088 different metabolites were detected, where 345 metabolites were differentially expressed; 203 (59%) were downregulated and 142 (41%) were upregulated (i.e., relative metabolite content is higher in 'NuMex Pumpkin Spice'). The upregulated metabolites comprised mostly of phenolic acids (42), flavonoids (22), and organic acids (13). Analyses of principal component (PC) and orthogonal partial least squares demonstrated clustering based on cultivars, where at least 60% of variation was attributed to the first two PCs. Pathway annotation identified 89 metabolites which are involved in metabolic pathways and the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. Altogether, metabolomics provided insights into the different metabolites present which can be targeted for breeding and selection towards the improvement of nutritional quality traits in Capsicum.

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In this work, a method based on ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography with a photodiode array detector (UPLC-PDA) was developed to comprehensively analyze phenolic compounds in peels of lime (Citrus × latifolia), lemon (Citrus limon), and rangpur lime (Citrus × limonia). The reverse-phase separation was achieved with a C18 fused-core column packed with the smallest particles commercially available (1.3 um). The method was successfully coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), allowing the detection of 24 phenolic compounds and five limonoids in several other citrus peels species: key lime, orange and sweet orange, tangerine, and tangerine ponkan, proving the suitability for comprehensive analysis in citrus peel matrices. Additionally, the developed method was validated according to the Food and drug administration (FDA) and National Institute of Metrology Quality and Technology (INMETRO) criteria, demonstrating specificity, linearity, accuracy, and precision according to these guidelines. System suitability parameters such as resolution, tailoring, plate count were also verified.

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Donepezil hydrochloride is one of the most prescribed anti-Alzheimer's drugs, despite being available for more than two decades, chromatographic methods for the quantification of the drug in biorelevant media that mimics pH physiological conditions in vivo (pH 1.2, 4.5, and 6.8) are not available in the literature. These media are used in the dissolution test, an important tool, for registration and quality control of medicines. Considering the need for methods with this purpose, this work aimed to develop and validate a sustainable UPLC-UV method for quantification of donepezil hydrochloride in tablets, specifically on assay and dissolution profile, with reduced environmental impacts. The proposed method has a run time of 2 min and requires for each run, only 0.8 mL of solvents, providing excellent green analysis. The method proved to be selective, linear, precise, accurate, robust in the range of 2-14 µg/mL. Three products (reference, similar, and generic) were analyzed and showed very rapid dissolution. The average content varied from 100.2 ± 0.6% to 109.5 ± 2.1%. Using dissolution efficiency (DE), the drug release profiles were compared in different biorelevant media.

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Imatinib mesylate is a small molecule used in cancer therapy as a thyrosine kinase inhibitor. Dexketoprofen trometamol is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug that has seen use in cancer therapy in combination with an anticancer drug to minimize tumor size and to reduce pain in patients. In the present study, imatinib mesylate and dexketoprofen trometamol were selected as potential model drugs to be used in combination. A new, simple and selective Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography method was developed and validated to determine the drug substances in distilled water, in a pH 7.4 phosphate buffer and in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium. The proposed method was developed using a BEH C-18 column with isocratic elution. A mixture of methanol:acetonitrile (80:20, v/v) and pH 9.5, 0.05 M ammonium acetate were (70:30, v/v) used as a mobile phase. Detection was carried out with a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min, a column temperature of 30°C and an injection volume of 20 µL. The method was validated considering linearity, accuracy, precision, specificity, robustness, detection limit and quantitation limit values, and was found to be linear in a range from 0.05 to 20.0 µg/mL for the three different media

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Asclepias linaria Cav. (Apocynaceae) is a shrubby plant endemic of Mexico which has been used in traditional medicine. However, the bioactive potential of this plant remains unexplored. In this study, the phenolic composition, antioxidant, and cytotoxic activities of A. linaria leaves were determined. In order to estimate the phenolic composition of the leaves, the total phenolic, flavonoid, and condensed tannins contents were determined. Furthermore, the antioxidant activity was measured by the scavenging activity of the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) and 2,2'-azino-bis[3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid] (ABTS•+) radicals and the total antioxidant capacity. The phenolic compounds identified in the A. linaria leaves by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) include phenolic acids, such as p-coumaric and ferulic acid, as well as flavonoids, such as rutin and quercetin. The leaves' extracts of A. linaria showed a high scavenging activity of DPPH• and ABTS•+ radicals (IC50 0.12 ± 0.001 and 0.51 ± 0.003 µg/mL, respectively), high total antioxidant capacity values (99.77 ± 4.32 mg of ascorbic acid equivalents/g of dry tissue), and had a cytotoxic effect against K562 and HL60 hematologic neoplasia cells lines, but no toxicity towards the normal mononuclear cell line was observed. These results highlight the potential of A. linaria and could be considered as a possible alternative source of anticancer compounds.

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A simple, sensitive, and selective method using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of parabens [methyl paraben (MeP), ethyl paraben (EtP), propyl paraben (PrP), butyl paraben (BuP), and benzyl paraben (BzP)] in human urine samples. After microextraction by packed sorbent (MEPS) using a C18 phase, the parabens were separated on a Kinetex C18 column (100 mm × 2.1 mm × 1.7 µm) within 4.6 min using isocratic elution. These compounds were detected on a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer using the multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) mode via an electrospray ionization source operating in the negative ionization mode. Important factors that influence MEPS performance were evaluated, such as the sample pH, draw-eject sample volume, clean-up step, and desorption conditions. The proposed MEPS/UPLC-MS/MS method presented a linear range from 0.5 ng mL(-1) (limit of quantification - LOQ) to 50 ng mL(-1), and interassay precision with coefficients of variation lower than 15%, and relative standard error values of the accuracy ranged from -8.8% to 15%. The MEPS/UPLC-MS/MS method was applied successfully to determine parabens in urine samples from 30 postpartum volunteers, enabling assessment of human exposure to these compounds.

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The aim of the present study was to investigate the tissue distribution and excretion of five components of Portulaca oleracea L. extract (POE) in rat following oral administration. A rapid, sensitive and specific ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) method with puerarin as the internal standard was used for the quantitative analysis of five components of POE, including caffeic acid (CA), p-coumaric acid (p-CA), ferulic acid (FA), quercitrin (QUER) and hesperidin (HP) in rat tissues including the liver, intestine, stomach, muscle, heart, lung, brain, kidney and spleen, urine and feces. The results show that onlyp-CA and FA were found in nearly all tissues with low cumulative ratios, and CA was higher in the intestine and stomach with a slightly higher cumulative ratio in the urine and feces after 24 h. HP and QUER were found at low levels in the tissues with low cumulative ratios.

O objetivo do presente estudo foi investigar a distribuição tecidual e excreção de cinco componentes de extrato Portulaca oleracea L. (POE) em ratos após administração oral. Um método analítico rápido, sensível e específico para quantificação de cinco componentes de POE (ácido cafeico (CA), ácidop-cumárico (p-CA), ácido ferúlico (FA), quercitrina (QUER) e hesperidina (HP)) por cromatografia líquida de ultra eficiência (UHPLC), empregando puerarina como padrão interno de referência. Os compostos foram quantificados em diferentes tecidos dos animais, sendo eles fígado, intestino, estômago, músculo, coração, pulmão, cérebro, rim e baço, urina e fezes. Os resultados mostraram que apenas p-CA e FA foram encontradas em todos os tecidos com baixas taxas cumulativas e CA apresentou níveis mais altos no intestino e estômago com a taxa cumulativa um pouco mais elevada na urina e nas fezes após 24 h. HP e QUER apresentaram baixas concentrações nos tecidos com baixas taxas cumulativas.

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Human dialyzable leukocyte extracts (DLEs) are heterogeneous mixtures of low-molecular-weight peptides that modulate immune responses in various diseases. Due their complexity, standardized methods to identify their physicochemical properties and determine that production batches are biologically active must be established. We aimed to develop and validate a size exclusion ultra performance chromatographic (SE-UPLC) method to characterize Transferon™, a DLE that is produced under good manufacturing practices (GMPs). We analyzed an internal human DLE standard and 10 representative batches of Transferon™, all of which had a chromatographic profile characterized by 8 main peaks and a molecular weight range between 17.0 and 0.2kDa. There was high homogeneity between batches with regard to retention times and area percentages, varying by less than 0.2% and 30%, respectively, and the control chart was within 3 standard deviations. To analyze the biological activity of the batches, we studied the ability of Transferon™ to stimulate IFN-γ production in vitro. Transferon™ consistently induced IFN-γ production in Jurkat cells, demonstrating that this method can be included as a quality control step in releasing Transferon™ batches. Because all analyzed batches complied with the quality attributes that were evaluated, we conclude that the DLE Transferon™ is produced with high homogeneity.

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A simple gradient Ultra Performance liquid chromatographic method (UPLC) was developed for determination of lopinavir and ritonavir from its related impurities and assay for the first time. This method involves the use of a C18 (Acquity UPLC BEH C18, 50 × 2.1 mm, 1.7 µm) column thermostated at 30 oC using triethylamine (pH 2.2): 0.1% H3PO4 in acetonitrile and methanol (85:15) as mobile phase in gradient elution mode. A Photo Diode Array (PDA) detector set at 215 nm was used for detection with flow rate 0.4 mL/min. This method was validated over the range of limit of quantitation (LOQ) to 50 to 150% of impurity specification limit and of working concentration for assay. The developed method was validated for linearity, range, precision, accuracy and specificity. This method was successfully applied for content determination of lopinavir and ritonavir in pharmaceutical formulations. This method can be conveniently used in quality control laboratory for routine analysis for assay and related substances as well as for evaluation of stability samples of bulk drugs and pharmaceutical formulations.

Desenvolveu-se, pela primeira vez, método de cromatografia líquida de ultra-eficiência (UPLC), com gradiente simples, para a determinação de lopinavir e ritonavir e suas impurezas relativas. Esse método envolve o uso de C18 (Acquity UPLC BEH C18, 50 × 2,1 mm, 1,7 µm), termostatizada a 30 oC, utilizando-se trietilamina (pH 2,2) e fase móvel de H3PO4 0,1% em acetonitrila e metanol (85:15), em eluição por gradiente. Detector de arranjo de fotodiiodo (PDA), fixado a 215 nm, foi utilizado para a detecção, com fluxo de 0,4 mL/min. Esse método foi validado em faixa de limite de quantificação (LOQ) de 50 a 150% de limite de impureza e da concentração de trabalho para o ensaio. O método desenvolvido foi validado quanto à linearidade, faixa, precisão, exatidão e especificidade. Esse método foi aplicado com sucesso para a determinação de lopinavir e de ritonavir em formulações farmacêuticas. Tal método pode ser convenientemente utilizado em laboratório de controle de qualidade, não só para análise de rotina e ensaio de substâncias relacionadas, como também para a avaliação da estabilidade de amostras a granel ou em formulações farmacêuticas.

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