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Biomedical subjects

X Michael Liu

Publications and source records attributed to X Michael Liu.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

Toxic anterior segment syndrome and possible association with ointment in the anterior chamber following cataract surgery.

PURPOSE: To report clinical and laboratory findings of 8 cases of toxic anterior segment syndrome (TASS) related to an oily substance in the anterior chamber of patients following cataract surgery with intraocular lens (IOL) implantation. SETTING: John Moran Eye Center, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. METHODS: Eight patients had uneventful phacoemulsification by the same surgeon via clear corneal incisions with implantation of the same 3-piece silicone IOL design. Postoperative medications included antibiotic/steroid ointment and pilocarpine gel; each eye was firmly patched at the end of the procedure. On the first postoperative day, some patients presented with diffuse corneal edema, increased intraocular pressure, and an oily film-like material within the anterior chamber coating the corneal endothelium. The others presented with an oily bubble floating inside the anterior chamber, which was later seen coating the IOL. Additional surgical procedures required included penetrating keratoplasty, IOL explantation, and trabeculectomy. Two corneal buttons were analyzed histopathologically. Two explanted IOLs had gross and light microscopic analyses (as well as surface analyses of 1 of them), and 4 other explanted IOLs had gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. RESULTS: Pathological examination of the corneas showed variable thinning of the epithelium with edema. The stroma was diffusely thickened and the endothelial cell layer was absent. Evaluation of the explanted IOLs confirmed the presence of an oily substance coating large areas of their anterior and posterior optic surfaces. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the lens extracts identified a mixed chain hydrocarbon compound that was also found in the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses of the ointment used postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that the ointment gained access to the eye, causing the postoperative complications described. These cases highlight the importance of appropriate wound construction and integrity, as well as the risks of tight eye patching following placement of ointment.

Aged↗

Lipid deposition on silicone hydrogel lenses, part I: quantification of oleic Acid, oleic Acid methyl ester, and cholesterol.

PURPOSE: To investigate the sorption of oleic acid, oleic acid methyl ester, and cholesterol on currently marketed silicone hydrogel contact lenses. METHODS: Two liquid chromatography methods were developed and used to analyze lens extracts from continuous-wear and daily-wear modalities from asymptomatic silicone hydrogel contact lens wearers. RESULTS: Of the three probed compounds, cholesterol is the most prevalently sorbed, at levels ranging from below the limit of quantitation (<1.50 microg per lens) to approximately 37.0 microg per lens. Oleic acid and oleic acid methyl ester were found to exist at levels below the limit of quantitation (<1.50 microg per lens). In general, there appears to be no significant difference between the amounts of cholesterol sorbed on the continuous-wear PureVision and daily-wear PureVision lenses evaluated. CONCLUSIONS: The quantities of lipid sorbed to continuous-wear PureVision lenses are significantly different from those previously reported by other authors in a similarly conducted experiment. This difference suggests that any hypothesis of silicone hydrogel lenses based on these previous lipid data should be reconsidered.

Absorption↗

Detailed characterization of cationic hydroxyethylcellulose derivatives using aqueous size-exclusion chromatography with on-line triple detection.

A more complete understanding of polymeric, cationic cellulose derivatives, including polyquaterium-10 (Polymer JR), has become increasingly important in the eye care industry as thorough characterization of raw materials helps promote product quality and process control. Often such detailed information requires utilization of a combination of analytical techniques. In this work three Polymer JR samples with different viscosities were characterized using aqueous size exclusion chromatography (SEC) with a light scattering detector, a differential viscometer, and a differential refractometer (triple detection). Detailed molecular information such as absolute molecular weights, molecular weight distributions, intrinsic viscosities, and molecular conformations were obtained. One major challenge of analyzing cationic polymers is abnormal size exclusion separation, which could be caused by the ionic interaction between sample molecules and the column packing material. A selection of mobile phases varying in pH, buffer, organic solvent content, and molar concentration of salts was employed to evaluate the correlation of obtained molecular weight values and mobile phase composition. Universal calibration concept was used to examine the abnormal size exclusion separation phenomenon of Polymer JR samples when using different mobile phases. It was observed that the abnormal size exclusion was dependent on both the separation conditions and molecular weights of the samples. Despite the changes in separation parameters and uncharacteristic polymeric structure compared to conventional SEC samples, the use of aqueous SEC with triple detection provided reproducible and valuable molecular information of Polymer JR samples with low to medium molecular weights. By using a combination of high buffer content and adding organic solvent, the abnormal exclusion separation of high molecular weigh Polymer JR could be considerably reduced.

Calibration↗

Characterization of implant device materials using size-exclusion chromatography with mass spectrometry and with triple detection.

A more complete understanding of the raw materials used for making implant device materials becomes increasingly important in the medical device industry. Often such detailed information requires utilization of a combination of analytical techniques. In this work, we characterize a poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) material using on-line size exclusion chromatography (SEC) with electrospray ionization (ESI) and matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry (MS) techniques. Here, we obtain detailed molecular compositional information such as repeat units, end group chemistry, and identification of impurities in both the high and low mass range. SEC with light scattering, viscosity, and refractive index detection (triple detection) is used to obtain information on a small quantity of high mass impurity that was undetected by both SEC-ESI and MALDI MS techniques. SEC with triple detection measures absolute molecular weights and molecular weight distributions. We compare average molecular weight values of the implantable device polymer obtained by SEC with triple detection, SEC-ESI, and SEC-MALDI MS techniques.

Chromatography, Gel↗

Comparative studies of poly(dimethyl siloxanes) using automated GPC-MALDI-TOF MS and on-line GPC-ESI-TOF MS.

In this study we compare on-line gel permeation chromatography (GPC) electrospray ionization (ESI) time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry (MS) to automated GPC matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) TOF MS for poly (dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) analysis. Average mass values for a hydroxyl-terminated PDMS (OH-PDMS) sample were obtained and compared to traditional GPC that was calibrated with narrow polystyrene standards, by direct ESI and MALDI MS analysis, by a summation of mass spectra of all GPC fractions, and also by the recalibration method determined by both mass spectrometric methods. Quantitatively, the difference noted here between these hyphenated techniques is that GPC-ESI-TOF MS effectively reports the low-mass oligomers and underestimates the high-mass oligomers, while GPC-MALDI-TOF MS effectively reports the high-mass oligomers and underestimates the low-mass oligomers. In the GPC-ESI-TOF MS experiments, ion current suppression was observed in the high molecular weight region. The suppression effect was confirmed by repeatable sample runs and by injecting different PDMS samples. Higher chromatographic resolution was observed for GPC-ESI-TOF MS compared to GPC-MALDI-TOF MS. In fact, truly mono-disperse oligomers were observed in the low molecular weight range from GPC-ESI MS experiments.

Journal Article↗

Detailed analysis of alpha,omega-bis(4-hydroxybutyl) poly(dimethylsiloxane) using GPC-MALDI TOF mass spectrometry.

In this study the prepolymer alpha,omega-bis(4-hydroxybutyl) poly(dimethylsiloxane), used in the formulation of oxygen permeable films, is evaluated by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) combined with matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) time of flight (TOF) mass spectrometry (MS). Two unexpected mass distributions are observed in the mass spectra. Reaction schemes for the formation of these distributions are proposed. A solution phase trimethylsilane end group modification was performed on the prepolymer to determine whether the unexpected mass distributions occur as impurities from synthesis or as artifacts from the MS process. Evaluation of the TMS modified prepolymer indicates the unexpected mass distributions indeed occur as impurities from the synthetic procedure. Average molecular weight values are determined by traditional GPC, direct MALDI-TOF MS, and GPC-MALDI-TOF MS methods and the results are compared.

Journal Article↗

Analysis of quartz by FT-IR in air samples of construction dust.

The construction industry is reported to have some of the highest exposures to silica-containing dust. With the designation of crystalline silica as a group I human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), there exists a need for an analytical method to accurately quantify low levels of quartz. A method is described that uses FT-IR for quartz analysis of personal air samples collected from heavy and highway construction sites using 4-stage personal impactors. Sample filters were ashed and 13-mm or 5-mm pellets were prepared. Absorbance spectra were collected using FT-IR at resolution of 1 cm(-1) and 64 scans per spectrum. Two spectra were collected per sample using the appropriate background spectrum subtraction. Spectral manipulations such as Fourier self-deconvolution and derivatizations were performed to improve quantification. Peak height for quartz was measured at 798 cm(-1) for quantitative analysis. The estimated limit of detection for the 5-mm pellets was 1.3 microg. Recoveries of Min-U-Sil 5 spikes showed an average of > or = 94 percent for the two pellet types. The coefficient of variation of the 5-mm pellet was 9 percent at 6 microg quartz load, and 7 percent at 62 microg load. Interferences from clay, amorphous silica, concrete, calcite, and kaolinite were investigated, these being the more likely sources of interferences in construction environment. Spikes of mixtures of amorphous silica or kaolinite with Min-U-Sil 5 showed both contaminants introduced, on average, a positive error of < 5 microg with average recoveries of 106 percent and 111 percent, respectively. Spikes of mixtures of clay or concrete with Min-U-Sil 5 showed overall average recovery of 100 percent and 90 percent, respectively, after accounting for the presence of quartz in clay and concrete. This method can quantify low levels of quartz with reasonable accuracy in the face of common contaminants found in the construction industry.

Air Pollutants↗

Characterization of human tear proteome using multiple proteomic analysis techniques.

Tear proteome profiling may generate useful information for the understanding of the interaction between an eye and its contacting objects, such as a contact lens or a lens implant. This is important for designing improved eye-care devices and maintaining the health of an eye. Proteome profiles of tear fluids may also be used for disease diagnosis and prognosis. However, only a small volume of tear fluid (<5 microL) can be collected in a clinical laboratory under normal operational conditions, which makes proteome profiling a challenge. In this work we apply several proteomic analysis techniques, including gel-based and solution-based approaches with LC-ESI and LC-MALDI MS and MS/MS to gauge the relative merits of producing proteome profiles and to generate as broad a coverage of the tear proteome as possible from this small amount of sample. It is shown that a total of 54 proteins can be confidently identified using less than 5 microL of tear fluid. Of these, 44 proteins can be detected by LC-MALDI MS alone with a consumption of 2 microL of tear fluid. Furthermore, LC-MALDI can be used to determine post-translational modifications (PTMs), such as glycosylation and phosphorylation, without any sample enrichment or treatment. This work represents one of the most extensive proteome profiles (i.e., proteins identified and PTMs characterized) generated from tear fluids using clinically relevant amounts of sample.

Chromatography↗