A Novel Exploratory Graph-Based Analytical Tool for Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy in Naturalistic Experiments: An Illustrative Application in Typically Developing Children.

Naturalistic paradigms are being increasingly applied to investigate human brain function. Compared with resting-state and task-based paradigms in neuroimaging, naturalistic stimuli and situations can be potentially more readily translated to daily-life applications. Among neuroimaging modalities, functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is particularly suitable for naturalistic investigations and applications.

Interactive Effects of Ayahuasca and Cannabidiol in Social Cognition in Healthy Volunteers: A Pilot, Proof-of-Concept, Feasibility, Randomized-Controlled Trial.

Background: Serotonergic hallucinogens and cannabinoids may alter the recognition of emotions in facial expressions (REFE). Cannabidiol (CBD) attenuates the psychoactive effects of the cannabinoid-1 agonist tetrahydrocannabinol. Ayahuasca is a dimethyltryptamine-containing hallucinogenic decoction.

Effects of ayahuasca on the endocannabinoid system of healthy volunteers and in volunteers with social anxiety disorder: Results from two pilot, proof-of-concept, randomized, placebo-controlled trials.

Objective: To assess endocannabinoid (anandamide, AEA; 2-arachidonoylglycerol, 2-AG) plasma levels in healthy volunteers and in volunteers with social anxiety disorder (SAD) after a single oral dose of ayahuasca or placebo.

Methods: Post hoc analysis of endocannabinoid plasma levels (baseline, 90 and 240 min after drug intake) from two parallel-group, randomized, placebo-controlled trials. In Study 1, 20 healthy volunteers ingested ayahuasca (average 1.

Effects of Ayahuasca on Personality: Results of Two Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trials in Healthy Volunteers.

Previous studies with the serotonergic hallucinogens LSD and psilocybin showed that these drugs induced changes in personality traits, such as increases in Openness. However, results are inconsistent, and the effects of ayahuasca on personality were never investigated in a controlled trial. To assess the effects of ayahuasca on personality in two randomized, placebo-controlled trials in healthy volunteers.

Bisphenol A release from orthodontic adhesives measured in vitro and in vivo with gas chromatography.

Introduction: The objectives of this study were to quantify in vitro the Bisphenol A (BPA) release from 5 orthodontic composites and to assess in vivo the BPA level in patients' saliva and urine after bracket bonding with an orthodontic adhesive system.

Methods: For the in-vitro portion of this study, 5 orthodontic composites were evaluated: Eagle Spectrum (American Orthodontics, Sheboygan, Wis), Enlight (Ormco, Orange, Calif), Light Bond (Reliance Orthodontic Products, Itasca, Ill), Mono Lok II (Rocky Mountain Orthodontics, Denver, Colo), and Transbond XT (3M Unitek, Monrovia, Calif). Simulating intraoral conditions, the specimens were immersed in a water/ethanol solution, and the BPA (ng.

Evaluation of superficially porous and fully porous columns for analysis of drugs in plasma samples by UHPLC-MS/MS.

This work compares the performance of recently introduced C superficially porous columns (four columns) and C fully porous columns (two columns), with different particle sizes, during the analysis of drugs in plasma samples by MS/MS detection. The following chromatographic parameters were evaluated for all the columns: reduced plate height (h) vs reduced linear velocity (v), impedance vs v, chromatographic run time vs flow rate (mLmin), backpressure vs flow rate (mLmin), resolution, peak capacity, asymmetry, and retention factor. By using DAD detection, hydrophobicity, silanol activity, and metal impurities were also assessed for the columns.

Low, Chronic Exposure to Endosulfan Induces Bioaccumulation and Decreased Carcass Total Fatty Acids in Neotropical Fruit Bats.

We investigated the effects of the insecticide endosulfan on energy metabolism and its possible accumulation in fruit bats. Adult male bats (Artibeus lituratus) were exposed for 35 days, when they were offered fruit treated with endosulfan (E) and adhesive spreader (AS) in the following concentrations (g/L): 0.0; 0.

Selective solid-phase extraction using molecularly imprinted polymers for analysis of venlafaxine, O-desmethylvenlafaxine, and N-desmethylvenlafaxine in plasma samples by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

This paper focuses on the development of a novel miniaturized molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) and ultra high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method to determine venlafaxine (VEN), O-desmethylvenlafaxine (ODV), and N-desmethylvenlafaxine (NDV) in plasma samples. The molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) was prepared by the precipitation polymerization approach; VEN, metacrylic acid, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, 2,2-azobisisobutyronitrile, and toluene were used as template, monomer, crosslinker, initiator, and porogen solvent, respectively. MIP and of the non-imprinted control polymer (NIP) sorbents were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy.

Selective molecularly imprinted polymer combined with restricted access material for in-tube SPME/UHPLC-MS/MS of parabens in breast milk samples.

A new molecularly imprinted polymer modified with restricted access material (a hydrophilic external layer), (MIP-RAM) was synthesized via polymerization in situ in an open fused silica capillary. This stationary phase was used as sorbent for in-tube solid phase microextraction (in-tube SPME) to determine parabens in breast milk samples by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). Scanning electron micrographs (SEM) illustrate MIP surface modification after glycerol dimethacrylate (hydrophilic monomer) incorporation.

Aqueous ozone solutions for pesticide removal from potatoes.

The presence of pesticide residues in potatoes is of concern because of the potential impact to human health due to the high consumption of this vegetable. In this study, aqueous solutions with and without ozone saturation as postharvest wash treatment at pH 4.0, 7.

Leaching and persistence of ametryn and atrazine in red-yellow latosol.

This study evaluated the mobility and persistence of atrazine and ametryn in red-yellow latosols using polyvinyl chloride columns with a diameter of 100 mm and a height of 15 cm. The assays simulated 60-mm rainfall events at 10-day intervals for 70 days. The persistence and leaching were evaluated for these two herbicides.

GIS applied to agriclimatological zoning and agrotoxin residue monitoring in tomatoes: A case study in Espírito Santo state, Brazil.

Searches related to global warming have provided important insights into the response of terrestrial ecosystems, but few have examined the impacts on agricultural crops, particularly those associated with the monitoring of agrotoxin residues. In this context, the agriclimatological zoning is an important tool in the planning and consolidation of crops and should be considered in any initiative that involves such planning. This tool is particularly important in the analysis of agrotoxin residues and may be applied by the Program Analysis of Agrotoxin Residues in Food (PARA) created by the National Health Vigilance Agency of Brazil (ANVISA), which enables greater food security and contributes to the improvement of human health.

The legacy of organochlorine pesticide usage in a tropical semi-arid region (Jaguaribe River, Ceará, Brazil): Implications of the influence of sediment parameters on occurrence, distribution and fate.

Between the 1940s and 1990s, immeasurable amounts of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) were used in endemic disease control campaigns and agriculture in the tropical semi-arid regions of Brazil. The present study evaluated the legacy of banned OCP usage, considering the levels, ecological risk and dependence on sediment physicochemical properties for the fate and distribution in the Jaguaribe River. The sum concentration of OCPs (ΣOCPs) ranged from 5.

Determination of Drugs in Plasma Samples by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring of Schizophrenic Patients.

This work describes the development of a simple, sensitive and selective method based on high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) to determine antipsychotics (olanzapine, quetiapine, clozapine, haloperidol and chlorpromazine) along with antidepressants (mirtazapine, paroxetine, citalopram, sertraline, imipramine, clomipramine and fluoxetine), anticonvulsants (carbamazepine and lamotrigine) and anxiolytics (diazepam and clonazepam) in plasma samples obtained from schizophrenic patients. The samples were prepared by protein precipitation. The target drugs were separated on an XSelect SCH C18 column (100 mm × 2.

Analysis of drugs in plasma samples from schizophrenic patients by column-switching liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with organic-inorganic hybrid cyanopropyl monolithic column.

This study reports on the development of a rapid, selective, and sensitive column-switching liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method to analyze sixteen drugs (antidepressants, anticonvulsants, anxiolytics, and antipsychotics) in plasma samples from schizophrenic patients. The developed organic-inorganic hybrid monolithic column with cyanopropyl groups was used for the first dimension of the column-switching arrangement. This arrangement enabled online pre-concentration of the drugs (monolithic column) and their subsequent analytical separation on an XSelect SCH C18 column.

The development of a new disposable pipette extraction phase based on polyaniline composites for the determination of levels of antidepressants in plasma samples.

In the present work, a new stationary phase for disposable pipette extraction (DPX) based on composites of polyaniline and a styrene-divinylbenzene (SD) copolymer was applied to the analysis of fluoxetine and norfluoxetine in plasma samples using liquid chromatography and fluorescence detector (LC-FD). The DPX variables, such as number of draw/eject cycles, sample pH, type and volume of the desorption solvent, were optimized to established the sorption equilibrium and shorten the analysis time. Among the DPX evaluated variables, the higher extraction efficiency were obtained with 200 μL of plasma mixed with 200 μL of borate solution (pH 9), followed by liquid desorption of the drug with 200 μL acetonitrile in a single cycle.

Determination of pesticides in lettuce using solid-liquid extraction with low temperature partitioning.

This work describes the optimization and validation of a method employing solid-liquid extraction with low temperature partitioning (SLE/LTP) together with analysis by gas chromatography with electron capture detection (GC/ECD) for the determination of nine pesticides (chlorothalonil, methyl parathion, procymidone, endosulfan, iprodione, λ-cyhalothrin, permethrin, cypermethrin, and deltamethrin) in lettuce. The method was found to be selective, accurate, and precise, with means recovery values in the range of 72.3-103.

Mobility and persistence of the herbicide fomesafen in soils cultivated with bean plants using SLE/LTP and HPLC/DAD.

A method has been optimized and validated for the determination of fomesafen in soils using solid-liquid extraction with low-temperature partitioning (SLE/LTP) and analysis by liquid chromatography with a high-efficiency diode array detector (HPLC/DAD). The method was used to evaluate the persistence and mobility of this herbicide in different soils cultivated with bean plants. Recovery values were ≥98.

Rimonabant effects on anxiety induced by simulated public speaking in healthy humans: a preliminary report.

Objective: We investigated the hypothesis that rimonabant, a cannabinoid antagonist/inverse agonist, would increase anxiety in healthy subjects during a simulation of the public speaking test.

Methods: Participants were randomly allocated to receive oral placebo or 90 mg rimonabant in a double-blind design. Subjective effects were measured by Visual Analogue Mood Scale.

Effects of ozone fumigation treatment on the removal of residual difenoconazole from strawberries and on their quality.

The effect of ozone fumigation on the reduction of difenoconazole residue on strawberries was studied. Strawberries were immersed in 1.0 L of aqueous solution containing 400 μL of the commercial product (250 g L(-1) of difenoconazole) for 1 min.

Evaluation of the composition of street cocaine seized in two regions of Brazil.

This work evaluates cocaine purity and the concentration ranges of adulterants and inorganic constituents for 31 street cocaine samples seized in two different regions of Brazil from July 2008 to May 2010. Cocaine and adulterants, such as caffeine, lidocaine and benzocaine, were quantified by Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and the inorganic constituents were determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) and ion chromatography (IC). The cocaine concentrations in the samples seized in the Amazonas state (AM samples) ranged from 154 to 978mgg(-1), and these samples did not contain any of the adulterants studied.

Sorption and desorption of sulfentrazone in Brazilian soils.

This study was undertaken to obtain information about the behavior of sulfentrazone in soil by evaluating the sorption and desorption of the herbicide in different Brazilian soils. Batch equilibrium method was used and the samples were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography. Based on the results obtained from the values of Freundlich constants (Kf), we determined the order of sorption (Haplic Planosol < Red-Yellow Latosol < Red Argisol < Humic Cambisol < Regolitic Neosol) and desorption (Regolitic Neosol < Red Argisol < Humic Cambisol < Haplic Planosol < Red-Yellow Latosol) of sulfentrazone in the soils.

Immunoaffinity in-tube solid phase microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection for determination of interferon α in plasma samples.

The present work describes a sensitive and specific automated immunoaffinity in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (LC-FD) method for the determination of interferon α2a in plasma samples for therapeutic drug monitoring. To this end, the intrinsic selectivity of the monoclonal antibodies has been combined with in-tube solid phase microextraction by immobilization of these antibodies into the fused silica capillary. The in-tube SPME variables, such as plasma sample volume, draw/eject volume, number of draw-eject cycles, as well as desorption procedure have been optimized, in order to improve the sensitivity of the proposed method.

Microextraction in packed sorbent for the determination of pesticides in honey samples by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry.

The present work describes the development and analytical validation of a method involving microextraction packed sorbent and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (MEPS-GC-MS) for the multi-residue analysis of 22 pesticides (permethrin, fenpropathrin, aldrin, α-hexachlorocyclohexane, β-hexachlorocyclohexane, lindane, vinclozolin, endosulfan, heptaclor, dodecaclor, tetradifon, 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis (p-chlorophenyl)ethane, 1,1-bis(p-chlorophenyl)-2,2-dichloroethylen, carbofuran, carbaryl, pirimiphos methyl, chlorpyriphos, dimethoate, disulfoton, fenamiphos, terbufos and profenofos) in honey samples. The MEPS variables of sample pH, draw-eject cycles, ionic strength and desorption procedure were optimized to improve the sensitivity of the proposed method. The method was shown to be linear at concentrations ranging from 2, 5 and 10 ng/g (limit of quantification) to 75-100 ng/g.

Evaluation of comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled to rapid scanning quadrupole mass spectrometry for quantitative analysis.

Comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) is a powerful technique that provides excellent separation and identification of analytes in highly complex samples with considerable increase in GC peak capacities. However, since second dimension analyses are very fast, detectors with a rapid acquisition rate are required. Over the last years, quite a number of studies have discussed the potential and limitations of the combination GC×GC with a variety of quadrupole mass spectrometers.