Extraction Techniques in Sample Preparation

Summary

Sample preparation is the most crucial step in the analytical procedure designed for implementation in any analytical application (food analysis, bionalysis, forensics, toxicology, environmental monitoring etc). It is the limiting factor in chemical analysis since it is time consuming and it can potentially introduce errors. No one can doubt that the best approach would be the direct introduction of the sample to the instrument; however, this is rarely feasible. Efficient sample pretreatment is inevitably required as the instrument technology has produced highly sophisticated and sensitive analytical equipment. Hence, the analytical scientists have to develop and apply a suitable sample preparation protocol that ensures that the composition of the sample remains unchanged, no impurities are introduced during handling, all interferences have been left back, and the analytes’ concentration is not only at detectable levels, but it can also be quantified precisely and accurately and that the matrix of the sample is compatible with the analytical technique. Extraction techniques are the most powerful tool available to analytical chemists and lab practitioners. Whether sorbent-based or solvent-based, extraction techniques provide the necessary tools to handle the sample in a way that can reveal all the important information. All advantages in instrumentation have been exploited to the fullest and the lifetime of the instrument is prolonged in a seamless operation mode. This entry collection aims to highlight some applications of extraction techniques in sample preparation.

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Entries

Topic Review

Technologies for Seaweed Polysaccharides Extraction

Algal metabolites possess nutritional properties, but they also exhibit antioxidant, antimicrobial, and antiviral activities, which allow them to be involved in several pharmaceutical applications. Seaweeds have been incorporated since ancient times into diets as a whole food. With the isolation of particular seaweed compounds, it would be possible to develop new types of food with therapeutically properties. Polysaccharides make up the majority of seaweed biomass, which has triggered an increase in interest in using seaweed for commercial purposes, particularly in the production of agar, carrageenan, and alginate. The bio-properties of polysaccharides are strictly dependent to their chemical characteristics and structure, which varies depending on the species, their life cycles, and other biotic and abiotic factors.

935
06 Sep 2022

Topic Review

Extraction Methods of Medicinal Plants for Antimicrobial Textiles

Medicinal plants are the product of natural drug discoveries and have gained traction due to their pharmacological activities. Pathogens are everywhere, and they thrive in ideal conditions depending on the nutrients, moisture, temperature, and pH that increase the growth of harmful pathogens on surfaces and textiles.

5.5K
22 Aug 2022

Topic Review

Machine-Vision-Based Leather Surface Defect Inspection

Machine-vision-based surface defect inspection is one of the key technologies to realize intelligent manufacturing. Leather products are regarded as the most traded products all over the world. Automatic detection, location, and recognition of leather surface defects are very important for the intelligent manufacturing of leather products, and are challenging but noteworthy tasks. Machine-learning-based defect inspection methods include three main links in industrial applications: data annotation, model training, and model inference. Real-time performance in real industrial applications focuses more on this part of model inference.

1.4K
12 Aug 2022

Topic Review

Exosome Isolation Techniques

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are lipid-binding vesicles secreted by cells into the extracellular space. The technologies and tools that have been used to purify exosomes from blood and other biofluids have evolved greatly, and this evolution has been driven by the need to accurately assess their biological function, but also and most importantly to decipher their molecular content, with a particular focus on tumor exosome biomarkers

716
20 Jul 2022

Topic Review

Polypropylene Extrusion Molding Production Quality

Polypropylene is derived from the reaction of petrochemical propylene gas with a density of 0.89–0.94 g/cm3. It is a lightweight plastic material with a semitransparent white color and has a lower cost than other plastic materials.

665
02 Jun 2022

Topic Review

Untargeted Human Milk Metabolomics

Human milk (HM) is considered the gold standard for infant nutrition. HM contains macro- and micronutrients, as well as a range of bioactive compounds (hormones, growth factors, cell debris, etc.). The analysis of the complex and dynamic composition of HM has been a permanent challenge for researchers. The use of novel, cutting-edge techniques involving different metabolomics platforms has permitted to expand knowledge on the variable composition of HM. Here, the state-of-the-art in untargeted metabolomic studies of HM, with emphasis on sampling, extraction and analysis steps is presented.

1.0K
30 May 2022

Topic Review

QuEChERS Application to the Determination of Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids

The identification of concerning high levels of pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) in a wide variety of food products has raised the occurrence of these natural toxins as one of the main current issues of the food safety field. Consequently, a regulation with maximum concentration levels of these alkaloids has been published to monitor their occurrence in several foodstuffs. According to legislation, the analytical methodologies developed for their determination must include multiresidue extractions with high selectivity and sensitivity, as a set of 21 + 14 PAs should be simultaneously monitored. However, the multiresidue extraction of these alkaloids is a difficult task due to the high complexity of food and feed samples. Accordingly, although solid-phase extraction is still the technique most widely used for sample preparation, the QuEChERS method can be a suitable alternative for the simultaneous determination of multiple analytes, providing green extraction and clean-up of samples in a quick and cost-effective way.

1.5K
12 May 2022

Topic Review

Green Extraction Techniques Applications in Different Fields

Green extraction techniques (GreETs) emerged in the last decade as greener and sustainable alternatives to classical sample preparation procedures aiming to improve the selectivity and sensitivity of analytical methods, simultaneously reducing the deleterious side effects of classical extraction techniques (CETs) for both the operator and the environment. The implementation of improved processes that overcome the main constraints of classical methods in terms of efficiency and ability to minimize or eliminate the use and generation of harmful substances will promote more efficient use of energy and resources in close association with the principles supporting the concept of green chemistry.

628
10 May 2022

Topic Review

Liquid Biopsy, ctDNA Diagnosis through NGS

Liquid biopsy with circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) profiling by next-generation sequencing holds great promise to revolutionize clinical oncology. It relies on the basis that ctDNA represents the real-time status of the tumor genome which contains information of genetic alterations. Compared to tissue biopsy, liquid biopsy possesses great advantages such as a less demanding procedure, minimal invasion, ease of frequent sampling, and less sampling bias. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) methods have come to a point that both the cost and performance are suitable for clinical diagnosis. Thus, profiling ctDNA by NGS technologies is becoming more and more popular since it can be applied in the whole process of cancer diagnosis and management.

665
22 Apr 2022

Topic Review

MNPs@QDs

The presence of food contaminants can cause foodborne illnesses, posing a severe threat to human health. Therefore, a rapid, sensitive, and convenient method for monitoring food contaminants is eagerly needed. The complex matrix interferences of food samples and poor performance of existing sensing probes bring significant challenges to improving detection performances. Nanocomposites with multifunctional features provide a solution to these problems. The combination of the superior characteristics of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) and quantum dots (QDs) to fabricate magnetic fluorescent quantum dots (MNPs@QDs) nanocomposites are regarded as an ideal multifunctional probe for food contaminants analysis.

655
22 Apr 2022

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