Environmental and Food Molecular Markers: Characterization and Binding Mechanism by Separation Methods

第一个目标将侧重于开发分离方法，主要是毛细管电泳法(CE)和液质联用法(LC/MS)，用于分析和表征可用作环境污染和食品真实性的示踪剂或指示剂的分子标记。在环境水域，这项研究计划将重点放在分子标志物上，如内分泌干扰物、甾醇、树脂酸、氯酚，这些物质正越来越多地被用作环境行为的指标，如蓄积和污染。此外，该研究计划将识别来自纸浆和造纸、采矿、风能和石油行业的废水的标志物，并将这些标志物用作周围环境机构污染的示踪剂。粪便类固醇和胆汁酸将被用来区分环境水域中动物粪便污染的来源，并将结果与喂养制度的类型联系起来。此外，我还将重点介绍变压器油中的潜在标记物。变压器使用包裹着纤维素纸绝缘子的导线线圈。在变压器中用作绝缘液的矿物油和酯基油，随着变压器使用年限的增长，越来越多地被纤维素击穿产物污染，导致油的降解，导致变压器故障和故障。在食品方面，目标是使用脂肪酸和多酚来确定乳制品的质量，并使用乳清蛋白来确定乳清污染的来源。因此，这项研究将涉及开发有效的分离方法(CE、LC/MS、GC/MS)来表征油分解的击穿副产物和新的指示化合物，并将这些与油的老化联系起来，从而预测变压器故障。这将使电力公司能够设计适当的纠正措施，以防止变压器故障。这将使我们深入了解天然和合成酯基油的组成如何影响油的老化，以及它们与变压器故障的关系。因此，电力工业将拥有化学知识来设计适当的纠正措施，以防止变压器故障。第二个目标将集中于开发分离方法，以研究双酚和多酚与血清运输蛋白(如白蛋白)的结合作用。这些白蛋白在血液循环系统中发挥着重要作用，并有与标志物相互作用的趋势。将建立毛细管电泳法来研究双酚/多酚与白蛋白的相互作用。本研究将有助于从分子水平上阐明双酚类化合物与多酚类物质的结合机理。

This first objective would focus on developing separation methods, primarily capillary electrophoresis (CE) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS), for the analysis and characterization of molecular markers that can be used as tracers or indicators for environmental contamination and for food authenticity. In environmental waters, this research program would focus on molecular markers, such as endocrine disruptors, sterols, resin acids, chlorophenolics, which are increasingly being used as indicators of environmental behaviour such as accumulation and contamination. In addition, the research program will identify markers that originate from effluents of pulp and paper, mining, wind energy and oil industries and use the markers as tracers for contamination of surrounding environmental bodies. Fecal sterols and bile acids will be used to distinguish between sources of animal fecal pollution in environmental waters and relate the results to the type of feeding regime. In addition I would focus on potential markers in transformer fluids. Transformers use coils of conducting wire covered with a cellulose paper-based insulator. Mineral oils and ester-based oils which are used as insulating fluids in transformers are increasingly contaminated with cellulose breakdown products as the transformer ages in service causing the oils to degrade resulting in transformer faults and failure. In food, the goal is to use fatty acids and polyphenols to identify the quality of dairy products and whey proteins to identify source of whey pollution in the dairy industry. Therefore, this study will involve developing efficient separation methods (CE, LC/MS, GC/MS) to characterize the breakdown by-products and new indicator compounds from oil decomposition and relate these to the aging of the oils and thus predict transformer failure. This would enable power utility companies to design appropriate corrective measures to prevent transformer failures. This will offer an in-depth knowledge into how the composition of natural and synthetic based ester oils impact the aging of the oils and how they relate to transformer faults. As a result, power utility industries would have chemical knowledge to use to design appropriate corrective measures to prevent transformer failures.The second objective will focus on developing separation methods to investigate the binding interaction of bisphenols and polyphenols with serum transport proteins (e.g., albumins). These albumins play an important role in the blood circulatory system and have a tendency to interact with the markers. CE methods would be developed to probe the interaction between the bisphenols/polyphenols and albumins. This study will help to elucidate the binding mechanism of the bisphenols and polyphenols at a molecular level.