UCT Clean Screen FASt® cited in Forensic Toxicology Study

In recent years, the abuse of newer psychoactive substances (NPS) such as synthetic cathinones or ‘bath salts’ has become a major public health concern. These compounds were initially sold legally and labeled “not for human consumption.” Three popular drugs of this type are methylone, mephedrone, and 3, 4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV). Unfortunately, there is currently no information available on the teratogenicity of these compounds, or of the extent to which they cross the placenta. In a recent paper authored by Lauren G. Strange et al., published in the journal Neurotoxicology and Teratology ((2017) 63 9–13) this issue was  addressed by employing UCT’s flagship sorbent Clean Screen® DAU followed by analysis utilizing HILIC LC-MS/MS. The purpose of this study was to examine the pharmacokinetic profile of the ‘bath salts’ in a pregnancy model using an animal model.

UCT Inc., is highly regarded by researchers in the area of biomechanical analysis for the manufacture and production of the very finest specialty chemicals including silanes and siloxanes. In a new paper by Prof. J.Hickman et al., NanoScience Technology Center, University of Central Florida (Journal of Biomaterials (10.1016/j.biomaterials.2017.01.005)), UCT’s specialty chemical trimethoxysilylpropyldiethylenetriamine (DETA, T2910KG) was employed to produce a film on microscope slides. These slides were then used for the induction of human intrafusal skeletal muscle fibers from satellite cells and their synaptic connection with human stem cell-derived sensory neurons in a defined in vitro system.

Brazil is one of the largest veterinary markets in the world, and aquaculture, in particular fish farming, is the fastest growing sector of animal food production in the country. In fish farming, antimicrobials, including sulfonamides, are used for the treatment of bacterial diseases. Sulfonamides belong to an important group of synthetic antimicrobial agents that have been used in human and veterinary medicine for over 60 years. Recently, these drugs have been extensively employed in animals intended to produce food for human consumption.

In a recent paper authored by Katia Nunes et al., published in Journal of Analytical Methods in Chemistry (doi.org/10.1155/2018/4506754), a multiresidue method for detecting and quantifying sulfonamides (sulfapyridine, sulfamerazine, sulfathiazole, sulfamethazine, sulfadimethoxine, sulfamethoxazole, and sulfamethoxypyridazine) and trimethoprim in tilapia fillet (Oreochromis niloticus) was developed and validated using UCT’s QuEChERS clean-up products in conjunction with liquid chromatography- mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). 

UCT is widely recognized as the premier manufacturer of specialty chemicals by researchers working in the area of biological analysis and modeling. This is exemplified by a paper published in Biomaterials by X.Guo et al.,  ((2017) 122 179-187).  In their study,  they report the de novo induction of human intrafusal skeletal muscle fibers from satellite cells and their synaptic connection with human stem cell-derived sensory neurons in a defined in vitro system. As an integral part of the study, process microscope coverslips were coated with UCT’s silane trimethoxysilylpropyldiethylenetri-amine (DETA, T2910KG) and were used to produce a film by the reaction of the cleaned surfaces with a 0.1% (v/v) mixture of the organosilane in freshly distilled toluene. This film was employed to study the induction of intrafusal fibers which were characterized by morphology and fiber-type specific transcription factor expression using phase microscopy and immunocytochemistry.