Naphtha is a petroleum fraction containing C4-C15 hydrocarbon compounds and is used as feedstock for petrochemical processes which are affected profoundly by trace amounts of arsenic. A simple method for arsenic determination in naphtha using electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry with polarized Zeemaneffect background correction was developed. Multiple injections were used for direct preconcentration in the graphite tube, eliminating sample pretreatment. Doehlert experimental designs were used to find the best settings for the furnace program parameters. Modifier concentration, number of multiple injections and sample volume were also optimized with the same multivariate approach. With three 45 mL sample injections, ashing temperature 1200 uC, atomization temperature 2700 uC and ashing time 60 s, a detection limit of 0.5 mg L 21 and a characteristic mass of 61 pg were achieved, using 3000 mg L 21 Pd(NO 3 ) 2 as the chemical modifier. The relative signal standard deviation was found to be 9.0% at the 2.3 mg.L 21 level. Results from several naphtha test samples showed arsenic levels typically below 3.0 mg L 21 . The high degree of automation of the proposed method minimized technician sample handling allowing its application for routine analysis. This procedure has been used for arsenic determination in naphtha feeds processed in the Braskem Petrochemical (Salvador, Bahia, Brazil).

In the current study, the applicability of the quantification of gamma interferon (IFN-γ) levels for the detection of animals infected with Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis and for determining caseous lymphadenitis (CLA) clinical status was evaluated. Peripheral blood leukocytes were collected from CLA nonendemic areas animals, from CLA seropositive animals without clinical signs of the disease, and from seropositive animals presenting CLA clinical signs. The leukocytes were stimulated with C. pseudotuberculosis-secreted antigens that were concentrated by the three-phase partitioning technique. An ovine IFN-γ enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to quantify IFN-γ production. Goats and sheep with CLA had higher IFN-γ levels than uninfected seronegative animals. Leukocytes from sheep with CLA chronic abscesses produced higher IFN-γ levels when compared with seropositive sheep without CLA clinical signs, but this difference was not significant in goats. The sensitivity of the assay was 55.8% and 56%, whereas the specificity was 100% and 93%, for goats and sheep, respectively. In conclusion, IFN-γ is a potential marker for the determination of CLA infection status in small ruminants; however, further research is needed to improve assay sensitivity.

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