Amygdalin in bitter and sweet seeds of apricots

Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) poisoning due to amygdalin (AMY) in apricot seeds is one of the public health issues in Turkey. The aim of this study was to investigate the AMY content of 13 different apricot seeds including bitter and sweet ones, and which are either sulfurized or roasted. The AMY content was determined by a high-performance liquid chromatography. Release of HCN was predicted and total amount of seeds which can cause poisoning was calculated. The mean AMY content of bitter seeds was 26 ± 14 mg g^?1 and that of sweet seeds was 0.16 ± 0.09 mg g^?1. The consumption of small amounts of bitter seeds may cause cyanide poisoning.     

Determination of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in fish samples from rivers and estuaries in Taiwan

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have been used extensively over the past two decades as flame retardants in many types of polymers, and have been found to be a class of contaminants of concern. Measurements of PBDEs in various environmental matrices from Sweden, Holland, Japan, North America, and elsewhere have been reported. We report data of PBDEs in fish samples taken from six rivers and three estuaries in Taiwan. Seven PBDE congeners were observed in all sixty samples. BDE-47 was found to be the dominant congener in all waters, and BDE-154 contributed more than BDE-99 and BDE-100. Nonetheless, BDE-154 and BDE-183 were the predominant congeners in some species studied. These results are somewhat different from those from other countries, where the pattern is typically BDE-47 > 99 >100 >154, 153, and is postulated to be due to the extensive use of octa-BDE rather than penta-BDE in Taiwan. The average concentration distribution across all samples of the sum of PBDE congeners ranged from 30.6 ng/g lipid to 281 ng/g lipid. The concentrations of PBDEs in fishes reported here are higher than those reported from European countries, but lower than those from the United States.     

Removing perfluorooctane sulfonate and perfluorooctanoic acid from solid matrices, paper, fabrics, and sand by mineral acid suppression and supercritical carbon dioxide extraction

The removal of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) from solid matrices has received considerable attention because of the environmental persistence, bioaccumulation, and potential toxicity of these compounds. This study presents a simple method using concentrated HNO₃ as a suppression agent, and methanol-modified supercritical carbon dioxide (Sc-CO₂) extraction for removing PFOS and PFOA from solid matrices. The optimal conditions were 16 M HNO₃ and 20% (v/v) methanol containing Sc-CO₂, under a pressure of 20.3 MPa and a temperature of 50 °C. Extraction time was set at 70 min (40 min for static and 30 min for dynamic extraction). PFOA and PFOS were identified and quantitated by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. The extraction efficiencies (with double extractions) were close to 100% for PFOA and 80% for PFOS for both paper and fabric matrices. The extraction efficiencies for sand were approximately 77% for PFOA and 59% for PFOS. The results show that this method is accurate, and effective, and that it provides a promising and convenient approach to remediate the environment of hazardous PFOA and PFOS contamination.