Secondary-metabolites fingerprinting of Argania spinosa kernels using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and chemometrics, for metabolite identification and quantification as well as for geographic classification.

Argan (Argania spinosa L.) fruit kernels' composition has been poorly studied and received less research intensity than the resulting Argan oil. The Moroccan Argan kernels contain a wealth of metabolites and can be investigated for nutritional and health aspects as well as for economic benefits.

Quality Control of Herbal Medicines: From Traditional Techniques to State-of-the-art Approaches.

Herbal medicines are important options for the treatment of several illnesses. Although their therapeutic applicability has been demonstrated throughout history, several concerns about their safety and efficacy are raised regularly. Quality control of articles of botanical origin, including plant materials, plant extracts, and herbal medicines, remains a challenge.

Cytotoxicity and Antiviral Activities of Haplophyllum tuberculatum Essential Oils, Pure Compounds, and Their Combinations against Coxsackievirus B3 and B4.

is a plant commonly used in folk medicine to treat several diseases including vomiting, nausea, infections, rheumatism, and gastric pains. In the current study, essential oils, hydrosols, the pure compounds -(+)-limonene, -(-)-limonene, and 1-octanol, as well as their combinations -(+)-limonene/1-octanol and -(-)-limonene/1-octanol, were screened for their cytotoxicity on HEp-2 cells after 24, 48, and 72 h, and then tested for their activity against Coxsackievirus B3 and B4 (CV-B3 and CV-B4) at 3 different moments: addition of the plant compounds before, after, or together with virus inoculation. Results showed that the samples were more cytotoxic after 72 h than after 24 h or 48 h cell contact.

Feasibility study on exhaled-breath analysis by untargeted Selected-Ion Flow-Tube Mass Spectrometry in children with cystic fibrosis, asthma, and healthy controls: Comparison of data pretreatment and classification techniques.

Selected-Ion Flow-Tube Mass Spectrometry (SIFT-MS) has been applied in a clinical context as diagnostic tool for breath samples using target biomarkers. Exhaled breath sampling is non-invasive and therefore much more patient friendly compared to bronchoscopy, which is the golden standard for evaluating airway inflammation. In the actual pilot study, 55 exhaled breath samples of children with asthma, cystic-fibrosis and healthy individuals were included.

Four Pistacia atlantica subspecies (atlantica, cabulica, kurdica and mutica): A review of their botany, ethnobotany, phytochemistry and pharmacology.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Pistacia atlantica (wild pistachio) belongs to the Anacardiaceae family, and growing from the Mediterranean basin to central Asia, especially in Iran, Turkey, Iraq and Saudi Arabia where it is extensively used in traditional medicine for a wide range of ailments related to relieving upper abdominal discomfort and pain, dyspepsia and peptic ulcer.

Objective: Despite the diverse biological activities of P. atlantica, there is no current review summarizing medicinal properties of its subspecies, including cabulica, kurdica and mutica.

Defining a standardized methodology for the determination of the antioxidant capacity: case study of Pistacia atlantica leaves.

Antioxidant activity can be measured by a variety of methods, that include hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) and single electron transfer (ET) methods. Most of these techniques are spectrophotometric, and thus incapable of quantifying or indicting individual antioxidant compounds. Nowadays, the integration of chromatographic and chemometric approaches allows a high-throughput identification and activity prediction of herbal products.

A new potential anti-cancer beta-carboline derivative decreases the expression levels of key proteins involved in glioma aggressiveness: A proteomic investigation.

Gliomas remain highly fatal due to their high resistance to current therapies. Deregulation of protein synthesis contributes to cancer onset and progression and is a source of rising interest for new drugs. CM16, a harmine derivative with predicted high blood-brain barrier penetration, exerts antiproliferative effects partly through translation inhibition.

Assessing mixtures of supercharging agents to increase the abundance of a specific charge state of Neuromedin U.

With increasing evidence of the important role of peptides in pathophysiological processes, a trend towards the development of highly sensitive bioanalytical methods is ongoing. Inherent to the electrospray ionization process of peptides and proteins is the production of multiple charge states which may hamper proper and sensitive method development. Supercharging agents allow modifying the maximal charge state and the corresponding distribution of charges, thereby potentially increasing the number of ions reaching the detector in selected reaction monitoring mode.

Selected-ion flow-tube mass-spectrometry (SIFT-MS) fingerprinting versus chemical profiling for geographic traceability of Moroccan Argan oils.

This study investigated the effectiveness of SIFT-MS versus chemical profiling, both coupled to multivariate data analysis, to classify 95 Extra Virgin Argan Oils (EVAO), originating from five Moroccan Argan forest locations. The full scan option of SIFT-MS, is suitable to indicate the geographic origin of EVAO based on the fingerprints obtained using the three chemical ionization precursors (HO, NO and O). The chemical profiling (including acidity, peroxide value, spectrophotometric indices, fatty acids, tocopherols- and sterols composition) was also used for classification.

Potentially antidiabetic and antihypertensive compounds identified from Pistacia atlantica leaf extracts by LC fingerprinting.

The objective of this paper is to evaluate the variations in the ability of Pistacia atlantica leaves to inhibit enzymes linked to type 2 diabetes (α-amylase and α-glucosidase) and to hypertension (angiotensin converting enzyme-I (ACE-I)), depending on harvesting month, gender and growing region, as well as to identify the peaks in chromatographic fingerprints that potentially correspond to components with enzymatic inhibitory activities. In this study, LC fingerprints of P. atlantica leave extracts were developed.

Batch-to-batch N-glycosylation study of infliximab, trastuzumab and bevacizumab, and stability study of bevacizumab.

Objectives: Infliximab, trastuzumab and bevacizumab are among the most frequently prescribed therapeutic proteins, and like most other therapeutic proteins, are glycosylated. As differences in glycosylation may significantly change the safety and efficacy of therapeutic glycoproteins, it is extremely important to control N-glycosylation consistency. In the first part of this study, the batch-to-batch consistency of the N-glycosylation of infliximab, trastuzumab and bevacizumab was analysed.

Seasonal, gender and regional variations in total phenolic, flavonoid, and condensed tannins contents and in antioxidant properties from Pistacia atlantica ssp. leaves.

Context: The widespread use of Pistacia atlantica Desf. ssp. (Anacardiaceae) in traditional medicine can be partly attributed to the content of its secondary metabolites, in particular, the phenolic compounds.

Antiplasmodial Activity, Cytotoxicity and Structure-Activity Relationship Study of Cyclopeptide Alkaloids.

Cyclopeptide alkaloids are polyamidic, macrocyclic compounds, containing a 13-, 14-, or 15-membered ring. The ring system consists of a hydroxystyrylamine moiety, an amino acid, and a β-hydroxy amino acid; attached to the ring is a side chain, comprised of one or two more amino acid moieties. In vitro antiplasmodial activity was shown before for several compounds belonging to this class, and in this paper the antiplasmodial and cytotoxic activities of ten more cyclopeptide alkaloids are reported.

LC-method development for the quantification of neuromedin-like peptides. Emphasis on column choice and mobile phase composition.

In this study, the separation of four neuromedin-like peptides is investigated on four different core-shell stationary phases. Moreover, the effect of the mobile phase composition, i.e.

The use of chemometrics to study multifunctional indole alkaloids from Psychotria nemorosa (Palicourea comb. nov.). Part II: Indication of peaks related to the inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase and monoamine oxidase-A.

Psychotria nemorosa is chemically characterized by indole alkaloids and displays significant inhibitory activity on butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) and monoamine oxidase-A (MAO-A), both enzymes related to neurodegenerative disorders. In the present study, 43 samples of P. nemorosa leaves were extracted and fractionated in accordance to previously optimized methods (see Part I).

The use of chemometrics to study multifunctional indole alkaloids from Psychotria nemorosa (Palicourea comb. nov.). Part I: Extraction and fractionation optimization based on metabolic profiling.

Extraction methods evaluation to access plants metabolome is usually performed visually, lacking a truthful method of data handling. In the present study the major aim was developing reliable time- and solvent-saving extraction and fractionation methods to access alkaloid profiling of Psychotria nemorosa leaves. Ultrasound assisted extraction was selected as extraction method.

LC-MS analysis combined with principal component analysis and soft independent modelling by class analogy for a better detection of changes in N-glycosylation profiles of therapeutic glycoproteins.

Therapeutic proteins are among the top selling drugs in the pharmaceutical industry. More than 60 % of the approved therapeutic proteins are glycosylated. Nowadays, it is well accepted that changes in glycosylation may affect the safety and the efficacy of the therapeutic proteins.

An improved microbore UHPLC method with electrochemical detection for the simultaneous determination of low monoamine levels in in vivo brain microdialysis samples.

The simultaneous determination of the monoamines dopamine (DA), noradrenaline (NA) and serotonin (5-HT) in in vivo microdialysis samples remains challenging because of the low extracellular neurotransmitter levels in different brain regions, specific sample characteristics, and the quest for high temporal resolution and a multi-target strategy in neuropharmacological research. A fast and sensitive microbore (1.0mm i.

Comparison of a triple-quadrupole and a quadrupole time-of-flight mass analyzer to quantify 16 opioids in human plasma.

The aim of this work is to study whether a quadrupole time-of-flight (QToF) mass analyzer, coupled to an ultra high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) system, can be a valuable alternative for a triple-quadrupole (QqQ) mass analyzer, for quantitative toxicological purposes. The case study considered was the quantification of 16 opioids (6-monoacetylmorphine, buprenorphine, codeine, dihydrocodeine, ethylmorphine, fentanyl, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, morphine, norbuprenorphine, norcodeine, norfentanyl, oxycodone, oxymorphone, pholcodine and tilidine) in human plasma. Both methods were validated in parallel in terms of selectivity, matrix effects, extraction recovery, carry-over, bias, precision and sensitivity.

Development and validation of an ion-exchange chromatography method for heparin and its impurities in heparin products.

An anion-exchange liquid chromatography method for the determination of heparin and its impurities (dermatan sulfate and oversulfated chondroitin sulfate) was developed using chemometric-assisted optimization, including multivariate experimental design and response surface methodology. The separation of heparin, dermatan sulfate, and oversulfated chondroitin sulfate (Rs above 2.0) was achieved on a Dionex RF IC IonPac AS22 column with a gradient elution of 10-70% of 2.

Improved sensitivity of the nano ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric analysis of low-concentrated neuropeptides by reducing aspecific adsorption and optimizing the injection solvent.

Obtaining maximal sensitivity of nano UHPLC-MS/MS methods is primordial to quantify picomolar concentrations of neuropeptides in microdialysis samples. Since aspecific adsorption of peptides to Eppendorf tubes, pipette tips and UHPLC vials is detrimental for method sensitivity, a strategy is presented to reduce adsorption of these peptides during standard preparation. Within this respect, all procedural steps from dissolution of the lyophilized powder until the injection of the sample onto the system are investigated.