Freezing-Enhanced Photoreduction of Iodate by Fulvic Acid.

Iodate is a stable form of iodine species in the natural environment. This work found that the abiotic photosensitized reduction of iodate by fulvic acid (FA) is highly enhanced in frozen solution compared to that in aqueous solution. The freezing-induced removal of iodate by FA at an initial pH of 3.0 in 24 h was lower than 10% in the dark but enhanced under UV (77.7%) or visible light (31.6%) irradiation. This process was accompanied by the production of iodide, reactive iodine (RI), and organoiodine compounds (OICs). The photoreduction of iodate in ice increased with lowering pH (pH 3-7 range) or increasing FA concentration (1-10 mg/L range). It was also observed that coexisting iodide or chloride ions enhanced the photoreduction of iodate in ice. Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometric analysis showed that 129 and 403 species of OICs (mainly highly unsaturated and phenolic compounds) were newly produced in frozen UV/iodate/FA and UV/iodate/FA/Cl- solution, respectively. In the frozen UV/iodate/FA/Cl- solution, approximately 97% of generated organochlorine compounds (98 species) were identified as typical chlorinated disinfection byproducts. These results call for further studies of the fate of iodate, especially in the presence of chloride, which may be overlooked in frozen environments.

Digital colorimetric sensor for assessment of iodate in food-grade salt based on paper-based analytical device.

A digital colorimetric sensor was developed for the on-site measurement of iodate in food-grade salt. It involved a paper-based analytical device (PAD) containing an immobilized iodide/starch reagent and a smartphone as the detection system. Iodate ions produce a blue-black coloration on the PAD, the smartphone captures a digital image of the PAD, and an installed mobile app performs an analysis to generate color values related to the intensity of the color in the PAD. Parameters in the image acquisition and PAD preparation were optimized, and a matrix-matched calibration plot was employed for quantification. The plot exhibited a linear response in the concentration range of 10 to 100 mg iodate kg-1 of salt, and a detection limit of 2.20 mg kg-1 was determined. The present method was applied to analyze real samples, and the results agreed well with those obtained using the reference method at the 95% confidence level.

Microbial Contributions to Iodide Enrichment in Deep Groundwater in the North China Plain.

Microorganisms play crucial roles in the global iodine cycling through iodine oxidation, reduction, volatilization, and deiodination. In contrast to iodate formation in radionuclide-contaminated groundwater by the iodine-oxidizing bacteria, microbial contribution to the formation of high level of iodide in geogenic high iodine groundwater is poorly understood. In this study, our results of comparative metagenomic analyses of deep groundwater with typical high iodide concentrations in the North China Plain revealed the existence of putative dissimilatory iodate-reducing idrABP1P2 gene clusters in groundwater. Heterologous expression and characterization of an identified idrABP1P2 gene cluster confirmed its functional role in iodate reduction. Thus, microbial dissimilatory iodate reduction could contribute to iodide formation in geogenic high iodine groundwater. In addition, the identified iron-reducing, sulfur-reducing, sulfur-oxidizing, and dehalogenating bacteria in the groundwater could contribute to the release and production of iodide through the reductive dissolution of iron minerals, abiotic iodate reduction of derived ferrous iron and sulfide, and dehalogenation of organic iodine, respectively. These microbially mediated iodate reduction and organic iodine dehalogenation processes may also result in the transformation among iodine species and iodide enrichment in other geogenic iodine-rich groundwater systems worldwide.

Environmental iodine speciation quantification in seawater and snow using ion exchange chromatography and UV spectrophotometric detection.

The behaviour and distribution of iodine in the environment are of significant interest in a range of scientific disciplines, from health, as iodine is an essential element for humans and animals, to climate and air quality, to geochemistry. Aquatic environments are the reservoir for iodine, where it exists in low concentrations as iodide, iodate and dissolved organic iodine and in which it undergoes redox reactions. The current measurement techniques for iodine species are typically time-consuming, subject to relatively poor precision and require specialist instrumentation including those that require mercury as an electrode. We present a new method for measuring iodine species, that is tailored towards lower dissolved organic carbon waters, such as seawater, rainwater and snow, using ion exchange chromatography (IC) with direct ultra-violet spectrophotometric detection of iodide and without the need for sample pre-concentration. Simple chemical amendments to the sample allow for the quantification of both iodate and dissolved organic iodine in addition to iodide. The developed IC method, which takes 16 min, was applied to contrasting samples that encompass a wide range of aqueous environments, from Arctic sea-ice snow (low concentrations) to coastal seawater (complex sample matrix). Linear calibrations are demonstrated for all matrices, using gravimetrically prepared potassium iodide standards. The detection limit for the iodide ion is 0.12 nM based on the standard deviation of the blank, while sample reproducibility is typically <2% at >8 nM and ∼4% at <8 nM. Since there is no environmental certified reference material for iodine species, the measurements made on seawater samples using this IC method were compared to those obtained using established analytical techniques; iodide voltammetry and iodate spectrophotometry. We calculated recoveries of 102 ± 16% (n = 107) for iodide and 116 ± 9% (n = 103) for iodate, the latter difference may be due to an underestimation of iodate by the spectrophotometric method. We further compared a chemical oxidation and reduction of the sample to an ultra-violet digestion to establish the total dissolved iodine content, the average recovery following chemical amendments was 98 ± 4% (n = 92). The new method represents a simple, efficient, green, precise and sensitive method for measuring dissolved speciated iodine in complex matrices.

Determinação do período de estabilidade de soluções volumétricas rotineiramente utilizadas em laboratórios de análises químicas / Determination of the stability period of volumetric solutions routinely used in chemical analysis laboratories / Determinación del período de estabilidad de las soluciones volumétricas utilizadas habitualmente en los laboratorios de análisis químicos

As soluções volumétricas são rotineiramente utilizadas nos laboratórios, principalmente nos processos de síntese de produtos e nas análises quantitativas de matéria-prima e/ou produto acabado, entretanto poucos são os estudos que abordam a estabilidade destas soluções. Considerando que a qualidade das soluções volumétricas pode afetar os procedimentos de análises químicas e consequentemente induzir a erros, e ainda que, a Farmacopeia Brasileira (2010) não cita tempo máximo de utilização dessas soluções padronizadas, a avaliação da estabilidade das mesmas é importante. Sendo assim, o objetivo do trabalho foi avaliar a estabilidadede 10 soluções volumétricas, empregadas rotineiramente em laboratórios de análises químicas, com o intuito de estabelecer o período que essas soluções permanecem estáveis, isto é, sem sofrer alteração na concentração. As metodologias de preparo e padronização das soluções volumétricas seguiram os métodos descritos na Farmacopeia Brasileira (2010), sendo as mesmas padronizadas no momento do preparo e a cada 20 dias, por um período de 180 dias. As soluções contendo ácidos e bases, bem como as soluções de iodato de potássio e nitrato de prata, permaneceram constantes durante o período de análises. As soluções de EDTA, iodo, nitrito de sódio, permanganato de potássio e tiossulfato de sódio apresentaram estabilidade inferior a 180 dias, tornando necessária a realização de padronização periódica. As soluções volumétricas utilizadas nos laboratórios apresentam diferentes estabilidades, o que ressalta a importância da determinação do período que as mesmas se mantêmcom as concentrações estáveis, evitando possíveis alterações de resultados nas análises químicas.

Volumetric solutions are routinely used in laboratories, mainly in product synthesis processes and in quantitative analyzes of raw materials and/or finished products, however there are few studies that address the stability of these solutions. Considering that the quality of volumetric solutions can affect chemical analysis procedures and consequently induce errors, and even though the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia (2010) does not mention the maximum time for using these standardized solutions, the evaluation of their stability is important. Therefore, the aim of this work was to evaluate the stability of 10 volumetric solutions, routinely used in chemical analysis laboratories, in order to establish the period that these solutions remain stable without changing their concentrations. The methodologies for preparing and standardizing the volumetric solutions followed the methods described in the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia (2010), being standardized at the time of preparation and every 20 days, for a period of 180 days. Solutions containing acids and bases, as well as potassium iodate and silver nitrate solutions, were stable during the analysis period. The solutions of EDTA, iodine, sodium nitrite, potassium permanganate and sodium thiosulfate showed stability less than 180 days, making it necessary to carry out periodic standardization of these solutions. The volumetric solutions used in the laboratories have different stabilities, which highlights the importance of determining the period in which they remain stable, avoiding possible changes in results in chemical analyzes.

Las soluciones volumétricas se utilizan de forma rutinaria en los laboratorios, principalmente en los procesos de síntesis de productos y en el análisis cuantitativo de materias primas y/o productos acabados. Sin embargo, existen pocos estudios que aborden la estabilidad de estas soluciones. Considerando que la calidad de las soluciones volumétricas puede afectar los procedimientos de análisis químico y consecuentemente inducir a errores, y también que, la Farmacopea Brasileña (2010) no menciona el tiempo máximo de uso de estas soluciones estandarizadas, la evaluación de su estabilidad es importante. Así, el objetivo del trabajo fue evaluar la estabilidad de 10 soluciones volumétricas, utilizadas rutinariamente en los laboratorios de análisis químico, con el fin de establecer el período en que estas soluciones permanecen estables, es decir, sin sufrir alteraciones en la concentración. Las metodologías de preparación y estandarización de las soluciones volumétricas siguieron los métodos descritos en la Farmacopea Brasileña (2010), siendo las mismas estandarizadas en el momento de la preparación y cada 20 días, por un período de 180 días. Las soluciones que contienen ácidos y bases, así como las soluciones de yodato de potasio y nitrato de plata, permanecieron constantes durante el periodo de análisis. Las soluciones de EDTA, yodo, nitrito de sodio, permanganato de potasio y tiosulfato de sodio fueron estables durante menos de 180 días, por lo que fue necesario realizar estandarizaciones periódicas. Las soluciones volumétricas utilizadas en los laboratorios presentan diferentes estabilidades, lo que pone de manifiesto la importancia de determinar el periodo que permanecen con concentraciones estables, evitando posibles cambios en los resultados en los análisis químicos.

Speciation analysis of both inorganic and organic 129I in seawater and its application in the study of the marine iodine cycle.

A complete protocol is presented for the speciation analysis of 129I for both inorganic and organic iodine in seawater using coprecipitation and solid-phase extraction (SPE) combined with accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). By modifying the iodide separation process and adding a crossover removal step, the improved coprecipitation method significantly reduces the cross-contamination of iodide and iodate to less than 0.05% in the speciation analysis of inorganic 129I, with the separation efficiencies of about 95% and 93% for iodide and iodate, respectively. The SPE-DOI method for the dissolved organic 129I (DO129I) analysis was developed, whereby we report the first direct observation of DO129I/DO127I atom ratios in seawater in this paper. 129I species in seawater from Tokyo Bay were analysed. The 129I results demonstrated that our protocol for speciation analysis of 129I is reliable and provided new insights into understanding the iodine cycle.

Dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction and diffuse reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy for iodate determination in food grade salt and food samples.

A novel method based on diffused reflectance Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (DRS-FTIR) was employed for iodate determination in food grade salt and food products. The method attained sensitivity that was comparable to or better than that in most of the contemporary spectrophotometric methods. This was realized through a combination of azo dye formation and dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction of dye when a 37-fold enrichment was obtained. FT-IR enabled integrating alternative target peak, and freedom in sample solvent composition relative to UV-visible spectrophotometry where the solvent polarity, pH, and presence of ions may affect the spectral properties of the measurable coloured species. Food samples containing iodide or covalently bonded iodine were oxidized with alkaline permanganate for mineralization and iodate formation. Optimization of both reaction conditions was carried out by means of response surface methodology. The method had a linear range 0.04-10 mg kg-1 iodate and limit of detection of 4.4 µg kg-1.

Gel electromembrane microextraction followed by ion chromatography for direct determination of iodine in supplements and fortified food samples: Green chemistry for food analysis.

In this study, a sensitive, selective, and environmentally friendly analytical method for direct extraction and preconcentration of iodine was developed. Iodine, as an iodate ion or iodide ion, was simultaneously extracted and preconcentrated by gel electromembrane microextraction (G-EME) and analyzed for total iodine by ion chromatography. The total iodine was determined by combining the peak areas of both iodate and iodide ions. Under the optimized conditions, linear calibration for iodine using a mixture of iodate and iodide ions was obtained from 10 to 100 µg L-1 (r2 > 0.996). The detection limit was 7.0 µg L-1. Recoveries of spiked iodine (as iodate) in the samples were greater than 90%. The method was applied for the determination of iodine in dietary supplements and fortified food samples, i.e., iodine-enriched eggs. Our developed method could be directly applied for the determination of iodine in different matrix samples including eggs without a pretreatment step.

Smartphone digital image colorimetry combined with solidification of floating organic drop-dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction for the determination of iodate in table salt.

Smartphone digital image colorimetry (SDIC), combined with solidification of floating organic drop-dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (SFOD-DLLME), was proposed for the determination of iodate ions. A colorimetric box was designed to capture images of sample solutions. Factors affecting the efficiency of SDIC included type of phone, region of interest, position of camera, and distance between camera and sample solution. Optimum SFOD-DLLME conditions were achieved with 1-undecanol (500 µL) as the extraction solvent, ethanol (1.5 mL) as the disperser solvent within 20 s extraction time. Limit of detection (LOD) was found as 0.1 µM (0.2 µg g-1) and enrichment factors ranged between 17.4 and 25.0. Calibration graphs showed good linearity with coefficients of determination higher than 0.9954 and relative standard deviations lower than 5.6%. The proposed method was efficiently applied to determine iodate in table salt samples with percentage relative recoveries ranging between 89.3 and 109.3%.

Effects of high potassium iodate intake on iodine metabolism and antioxidant capacity in rats.

BACKGROUND: KIO3 and KI are the most common salt iodization agents. Coincidentally, iodine exists naturally in high-iodine drinking water in the form of iodide (I-) or iodate (IO3-). As an oxidizing substance, IO3- should be reduced to I- before it can be effectively used by the thyroid. However, there is a lack of systematic studies on the metabolic process of high dose KIO3in vivo. METHODS: The iodine metabolism processes in the thyroid and serum of rats after high KIO3 intake were determined using high-performance liquid chromatography-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (HPLC/ICP-MS) and arsenic cerium catalytic spectrophotometry. The changes of redox activity in the serum, thyroid, liver, and kidneys were observed by detecting total antioxidative activity (TAA). RESULTS: High doses of IO3- were completely reduced to I-in vivo within 0.5 h. The level of organic bound iodine in the serum was stable, while the organic bound iodine in the thyroid increased to a plateau after intake of high-dose KIO3. The levels of total iodine and I- in serum and thyroid increased quickly, then all decreased after reaching the maximum absorption peak, and I- had two absorption peaks in serum. The thyroid blocking dose of I- was 0.5 mg/kg in rat. Additionally, high KIO3 intake did not influence the TAA in serum and other tissues. CONCLUSION: The body is able to reduce and utilize high doses of KIO3 ingested through the digestive tract. The metabolism of high KIO3in vivo is characterized by two absorption process of I- in serum and the thyroid blocking effect. Moreover, a single intake of high-dose KIO3 does not affect TAA in vivo. The results suggest that such excess IO3- may have be reduced in the digestive tract before I- enters the blood.

Simultaneous Analysis of Iodine and Bromine Species in Infant Formula using HPLC-ICP-MS.

Background: A fast and sensitive method for the simultaneous analysis of iodine and bromine species in infant formula was developed using HPLC-inductively coupled plasma-MS (HPLC-ICP-MS). Method: To determine the four halogen species [iodide (I-), iodate (IO3-), bromide (Br-), and bromate (BrO3-)] in a milk-based Standard Reference Material and four commercially available infant formula products. Results: The four halogen species were baseline separated in less than 6.5 min using an anion exchange resin column and 5.0 mM NaH2PO4 / 15.0 mM Na2SO4 / 5.0 mM EDTA (pH 7.0) mobile phase. Following separation, the halogen species were detected by measuring m/z 79 for Br and m/z 127 for I using a triple quadrupole-ICP-MS. The instrument was operated in single quadrupole mode with helium cell gas. Excellent linearity (R = 0.9999 or better) was obtained for all four species with calibration standards ranging from 0 to 100 ppb. The LOD for I-, IO3-, Br-, and BrO3- were all less than 0.67 µg/kg. To test the suitability of the method for the accurate determination of low concentrations of the four species in infant formula samples, a spike recovery test was carried out at 20 and 40 µg/kg into the diluted infant formula samples. Conclusions: Total elemental determinations of iodine and bromine were also performed using the triple quadrupole-ICP-MS without HPLC.

Determination of iodate in iodized edible salt based on a headspace gas chromatographic technique.

This paper introduces a convenient approach for determining iodate in iodized salt by headspace gas chromatography (HS-GC). The analytical technique can measure the generated carbon dioxide from the redox reaction between iodate and sodium oxalate in the presence of strong acid. The formed carbon dioxide from this reaction in a closed vial is measured by GC. It was observed that the redox reaction in the vial was completed in 40 min at 95 °C. The results indicated that this analytical technique is precise (RSD ≤ 2.69%) and accurate (relative errors ≤ 7.21%). The present approach is fast and simple, providing a robust avenue to the routine estimation of iodate in iodized salt in a wide variety of applications from processing to quality monitoring.

Potassium iodate levels in processed edible salts available in retail shops throughout Kenya, 2013.

OBJECTIVE: Iodine-deficiency disorders, due to insufficiency of iodine in the diet, are a global public health problem. The Kenyan Food, Drugs and Chemical Substances Act stipulates that processed retail-available edible salts contain 50-84 mg of potassium iodate (KIO3) per kilogram of salt. The present study determined the status of KIO3 levels in commercial salts, for public health action.Design/Setting/SubjectsAs part of the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2013, field workers collected salt samples from seven different local manufacturers/packers across eight regions of the country and sent them to the National Public Health Laboratory (NPHL) for KIO3 titration analysis. RESULTS: A total of 539 samples were collected and analysed at NPHL. The samples had a mean KIO3 of 62 mg/kg. Thirty-three (6 %) samples had KIO3 of 84 mg/kg. CONCLUSIONS: The study found that 62 % of salts sampled met the Kenyan standards, 24 % were below the required limits and 13 % were above the recommended range. Continuous monitoring of edible salts at the retail level is important to detect brands not adhering to standards and trace them for remedy. However, governmental efforts should be directed to the quality control and quality assurance of the salt-manufacturing industries.

Assessment of thyroid hormone levels and thyroid disorders: A case study from Gujranwala, Pakistan.

This case study is conducted to investigate the thyroid hormone levels and relevant disorders including evaluation of dietary conditions in the rural area of Gujranwala and its surrounding districts. Thyroid disorders are clinically prevalent and their manifestation differs considerably with geographical variations. A randomized study of 177 subjects was carried out, with a questionnaire about their dietary habits/life style and acquisition of blood samples for thyroid hormone level assessment using radioimmunoassay technique. This study was permitted by the local ethics committee and an informed consent was obtained from the patients. Study of normally distributed population with p value less than <0.005 and mean age 32.67±13 years demonstrated that 37% female and 43% males were hyperthyroid with elevated levels of FT3and FT4. Amongst the diagnosed cases of hyperthyroidism 47% females and 33% of males were using Iodized salt with 50ug/ppm increased concentration of KIO3 in their diet without any prescription. Furthermore, 60% of diagnosed hypothyroid cases were having no iodine supplementation in their diet. Thyroid function problems are more common in females (N=137) than males (N=40) but the severity of this disease was found to be more pronounced in males as the TSH level (33.13±22.73) was twice that as compared to females (17.63±18.15). Despite a high prevalence of recognized thyroid disease in the population a considerable number of inhabitants have undiagnosed thyroid dysfunction. These findings necessities wider scale studies for the mapping of thyroid behavior and the contributing factors for this region with a population of more than 20 million.

The potential role of kelp forests on iodine speciation in coastal seawater.

Kelps have a major role in marine and atmospheric iodine cycling in the coastal zone of temperate regions, with potential wide-ranging impacts on ozone destruction in the coastal marine boundary layer. However, little is known about the impact of kelp forests on iodine speciation in coastal sea water. To address this, we examined iodide and iodate concentrations in seawater in and around a giant kelp forest near San Diego, CA, USA, and a nearby site that was not influenced by kelp biology. Our data shows that while both iodide and iodate concentrations remained unchanged during the year at the nearby site, these concentrations changed significantly in and around the kelp forest, and were strongly related to changes in kelp canopy biomass. In particular, iodide reached its highest concentration and iodate reached its lowest concentration during the summer when the kelp canopies were near their maximum, while the opposite pattern was observed during the winter and spring when the kelp canopies were near their minimum. Further, comparisons of these changes with corresponding changes in seawater temperature and wind speed indicated that these relationships were relatively small compared to those with changes in kelp biomass. Together, our data show a strong relationship between kelp biomass and iodine metabolism.

Reduction of iodate in iodated salt to iodide during cooking with iodine as measured by an improved HPLC/ICP-MS method.

BACKGROUND: Iodate is a strong oxidant, and some animal studies indicate that iodate intake may cause adverse effects. A key focus of the safety assessment of potassium iodate as a salt additive is determining whether iodate is safely reduced to iodide in food. OBJECTIVE: To study the reduction of iodate in table salt to iodide and molecular iodine during cooking. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifteen food samples cooked with and without iodated salt were prepared in duplicate. The iodine in the cooked food was extracted with deionized water. The iodine species in the extracts were determined by using an improved high-performance liquid chromatography/inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (HPLC/ICP-MS). The cooking temperature and the pH of the food were determined. RESULTS: The conversion rate of iodate in iodated salt to iodide and molecular iodine was 96.4%±14.7% during cooking, with 86.8%±14.5% of the iodate converted to iodide ions and 9.6% ±6.2% converted to molecular iodine to lose. The limit of detection, limit of quantification, relative standard deviation and recovery rate of the method HPLC/ICP-MS were 0.70 µg/L for I- (0.69 µg/L for IO3-), 2.10 µg/L for I- (2.06 µg/L for IO3-), 2.6% and 101.6%±2.6%, respectively. CONCLUSION: Almost all iodate added to food was converted into iodide and molecular iodine during cooking. The improved HPLC/ICP-MS was reliable in the determination of iodine species in food extracts.

[Determination of Iodine and Iodate in Brine and Seafood Simultaneously by Ultraviolet Absorption Spectrometry].

The iodide in samples was oxidized to iodate by bromine water, which could be removed by formic acid, and iodate could be transformed to I3- with excess of I- in phosphoric acid, the iodate in samples could be transformed directly to I3- with excess of I- in phosphoric acid. The I3- solution had strong absorption at 350 and 288 nm, and the absorbance had a linear relationship to the concentration of I3- in a certain range. Total content of iodide and iodate had been detected after samples were oxidized by bromine water and the content of iodate had been detected directly, and the content of iodide was obtained by difference of the two results. Based on this, the method had been established to detect iodide and iodate in brine and seafood simultaneously by ultraviolet absorption spectrometry. The volumes of bromine water, formic acid, phosphoric acid and potassium iodide had been optimized. The effect of illumination, temperature and time also had been discussed. The optional reagents condition for iodide was: 2 drops of 3% bromine water, 0.5 mL of 10% formic acid, 4 mL of 20% phosphoric acid and 1 mL of 100 g x L(-1 KI. The optional reagents condition for iodate was: 0. 2 mL of 20% phosphoric acid and 1 mL of 100 g x L(-1) KI. The absorbance were determined after reacting for 30 min at room temperature and natural light conditions. Under the optimized conditions, the concentration of iodide and iodate in the range of 0 - 1.2 and 0 -1.5 mg x L(-1) were well agreed with Lambert Beer law. The sample blank was detected for twelve times and the detection limit of iodide and iodate were 1.54 and 14.8 µg x L(-1) respectively. The RSD of twelve times determination of 0.8 mg x L(-1) of iodide and iodate were 0.097% and 0.067%, respectively. The iodide and iodate in Zhabuye brine, Hong Feng underground brine, kelp, seaweed and sea cabbage had been detected, the recovery experiments also had been conducted at the same time, the recovery of iodide and iodate were between 80% - 120%. All the results met the requirement of analytical chemistry.

Analysis of potassium iodate reduction in tissue homogenates using high performance liquid chromatography-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry.

Potassium iodate (KIO3) and potassium iodide (KI) are the major salt iodization agents used worldwide. Unlike iodide (I(-)), iodate (IO3(-)) should be reduced to I(-) before it can be effectively used by the thyroid. In this study, we developed a new method for analyzing IO3(-) and I(-) in tissue homogenates using high performance liquid chromatography coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (HPLC-ICP-MS). We further applied the method to demonstrate the KIO3 reduction process by tissues in vitro. The effects of KIO3 on the total antioxidative activity (TAA) and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) were also investigated here. Finally, we found that IO3(-) can be reduced to I(-) by tissue homogenates and IO3(-) irreversibly decreases the antioxidant capability of tissues. Our studies suggest that KIO3 might have a big effect on the redox balance of tissue and would further result in oxidative stress of organisms.

Fundus autofluorescence (FAF) non-invasively identifies chorioretinal toxicity in a rat model of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) damage.

INTRODUCTION: Traditional methods of pre-clinical ocular toxicology require that multiple cohorts of animals be sacrificed over time for terminal histological analysis. By contrast, in vivo techniques capable of following the same cohort prospectively have the potential to be efficient and cost-saving. We therefore asked if fundus autofluorescence (FAF), a non-invasive imaging technique, could detect damage to the posterior pole. Results were compared against electroretinography (ERG), another in vivo technique. The systemic toxin sodium iodate (NaIO3) was used to induce retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) damage. METHODS: FAF images (488/510nm excitation/emission) were obtained using a commercially available confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscope (cSLO; Heidelberg, HRAII) and were described qualitatively and quantitatively. NaIO3, over a dose range of 5 to 45mg/kg, or saline, was injected via tail vein in 6-10week old Sprague Dawley rats, and FAF images obtained at baseline and days 3, 7 and 14 thereafter and compared against the ERG response amplitude. RESULTS: Compared against baseline, there was no change in the FAF or ERG responses in the control, 5 or 15mg/kg NaIO3 groups. At 30mg/kg, responses fell into two groups. Half the animals developed small patches of abnormal FAF with modest reductions in the ERG amplitude; the other half developed large areas of damage and had severely reduced ERG responses. At 45mg/kg, all eyes developed extensive areas of abnormal FAF and the ERG was non- or minimally recordable. The en face size of the FAF patches was inversely correlated with the b-wave amplitude. DISCUSSION: This study demonstrates that FAF can detect chorioretinal toxicity in vivo in the rat eye, and that the findings correlate with the ERG. Such in vivo testing can enhance the detection of ocular toxicity.

Iodine speciation in coastal and inland bathing waters and seaweeds extracts using a sequential injection standard addition flow-batch method.

The present work describes the development of a sequential injection standard addition method for iodine speciation in bathing waters and seaweeds extracts without prior sample treatment. Iodine speciation was obtained by assessing the iodide and iodate content, the two inorganic forms of iodine in waters. For the determination of iodide, an iodide ion selective electrode (ISE) was used. The indirect determination of iodate was based on the spectrophotometric determination of nitrite (Griess reaction). For the iodate measurement, a mixing chamber was employed (flow batch approach) to explore the inherent efficient mixing, essential for the indirect determination of iodate. The application of the standard addition method enabled detection limits of 0.14 µM for iodide and 0.02 µM for iodate, together with the direct introduction of the target water samples, coastal and inland bathing waters. The results obtained were in agreement with those obtained by ICP-MS and a colorimetric reference procedure. Recovery tests also confirmed the accuracy of the developed method which was effectively applied to bathing waters and seaweed extracts.