Simultaneous determination of preservatives [sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate] in soft drinks and herbal extracts using high-performance liquid chromatography [HPLC]

Chemical preservation has become an increasingly important practice in modern food technology and herbal medicinal products with the increase in production of processed and convenience products. In the present study, a reversed-phased HPLC method for simultaneous determination of the preservatives sodium benzoate [SB] and potassium sorbate [PS] is described. The separation of SB and PS were performed on the C[18-] column and acetonitrile -ammonium acetate buffer as mobile phase. The detector wavelength was set at 254 nm. Separation of the two components [SB and PB] was achieved in less than 6 min. Analytical characteristics of the separation such as limit of detection, limit of quantification, accuracy, precision and reproducibility were evaluated. The range of preservatives found were from not detected [nd] - 2477 mg 1[-1], nd - 328 mg 1[-1] for SB, PS respectively. In This study, has shown that the concentration of SB and PS in the soft drink samples is higher that ADI even for normal consumers, based on maximum limits specified in national standards and on model diets

Antihistaminic and anticholinergic activity of methanolic extract of barberry fruit [Berberis vulgaris] in the guinea- pig ileum

Barberry [Berberris vulgaris] is a well known medicinal plant in Iran and has also been used as food. This study was conducted to evaluate antihistaminic and anticholinergic activity of methanolic extract of barberry fruit. Methanolic extract was prepared and pharmacologically studied on isolated guineapig ileum, dose- response curves of histamine and acetylcholine with and without methanolic extract were plotted. The pA[2] values for antihistaminic activity of methanolic extract and dexchlorpheniramine were calculated [extract; pA[2] +/- S.E.M = 3.53 +/- 0.16 [-logC[g/l]]; dexchlorpheniramine; pA[2] +/- S.E.M.= 9.36 +/- 0.14 [[-logC [M]] and compared with each other. The pA[2] values of anticholinergic activity of methanolic extract and atropine were also calculated [extract; pA[2] +/- S.E.M = 4.18 +/- 0.17 [-logC[g/1]]; atropine, PA[2] +S.E.M = 8.99 +/- 0.13 [-logC[M]] and compared. The results indicated antihistaminic and anticholinergic activity of methanolic extract

Evaluation of aflatoxin contamination in Maize from Mazandaran province in Iran

In Iran, maize is cultivated in wide areas including northern provinces. It is one of the most important crops for poultry and livestock feeding, which is susceptible to aflatoxins [AFs] contamination. So, pre-harvest maize samples from Mazandaran province, north of Iran were analyzed for AFs contamination. Thirty-five pre-harvest maize samples were analyzed using immunoaffinity column and reversed-phase liquid chromatography with post-column derivatization. Data revealed that incidence of AFB1, AFB2 and total aflatoxins [AFT] in maize samples were 66%, 54% and 63% with mean of 9.5 +/- 16.3, 1.7 +/- 2.6 and 10.4 +/- 18.4 ng/g, respectively. The mean level of AFB1 in samples was higher than the Iranian maximum tolerated level [MTL]. But, AFT mean level [10.4 ng/g] was lower than the Iranian and US [20 ng/g] MTLs