Fundamentals of Chromatography: Chromatography is a science of study that involves the separation of molecules in a mixture based on differences in their structure and/or composition. It is one of the most common physical methods performed in laboratories to separate the most complex mixtures containing complex molecules. The procedure consists of two parts viz. the mobile phase and the stationery phase. The mobile phase is the mixture to be separated dissolved in a solvent and the stationery phase is the layer of a certain material in its solid form through which the mobile phase passes through and disintegrates into separate components at various stages. Adsorptive materials are used in the stationery phase. If you notice the functions of chromatography procedure you would know what exactly it is useful for. Its application implies on to chemical or bioprocessing industries where they are faced with the challenge to separate and purify from a complex mixture a particular compound that forms an important factor in the production line. The method is so precise that it can even successfully separate proteins that vary in a single amino acid from a complex protein mixture. Also the conditions under which chromatography is performed are not severe thus it can be used to separate products with higher sensitivity as well. Some of the conventional equipments involved in chromatography were paper and thin layer (glass and silica gel). Modern chromatographic techniques involve the use of columns. These columns are made up of glass or a metal tube that are strong enough to withstand the pressure of the materials that may be applied to it in the process. These tubes contain the stationery phase, while the mobile phase is made to pass through it. The stationery phase absorbs the solvent in the mobile phase and efficiently separates the mixture into its different components. The stationary phase columns can be of two types, viz Packed Bed Column and Open Tubular Column. While packed bed column would consist of a granular form of the stationery phase packed closely into the column and open tubular column consists of a thin film or layer on the column wall. A broad category of chromatographic techniques performed in laboratories today are Gas chromatography and Liquid chromatography. These are classified in terms of the materials used in mobile and the stationery phases. The mobile phase is the carrier fluid for the target samples and the stationery phase normally consists of materials that have a varying affinity for the components present in the sample mixture. When the mobile phase is in the form of a gaseous substance, especially inert gas, and the stationery phase is an adsorbent or liquid that is supported on a porous support that is also inert, the process is known as gas chromatography. When both the mobile and the stationery phase are liquids and the liquid in the stationery phase is bonded to the surface of an adsorbent, the chromatography type is liquid chromatography. Biotechnology: An Overview: Application of technologies on biological systems, dead organisms and their derivatives
and food and medicine can be broadly defined as Biotechnology. It never had a particular definition since its applications and implementations on various other areas of science are enormous. From manipulating crops and plants to increase the yield to transfer of genes from one organism to the other biotechnology encompasses almost all the living and non-living entities on earth. With the drastic improvement in various machineries and equipments used in the processing of biological materials and the examining of microscopic organisms biotechnology has come a far way since the traditional days of fermentation like techniques, which also is a part of biotechnology. In the earlier times, biotechnology’s application was limited to agriculture and in the production of fermented food products but with the discovery of newer and much complicated data comprising of the most smallest of structures that are measured in microns biotechnology has been found fruitful in the production of many useful products that improves the quality of life of mankind. The categories of science like genetic engineering, animal cell culture, plant cell culture, microbiology, molecular biology, cytogenetics, cryopreservation, bioprocessing, biochemistry, cell biology, embryology, immunology and bioinformatics all these come under biotechnology. Biotechnology has wide prospects when it comes to environmental science as well. It is used to recycle and retreat the wastes that are left behind at contaminated sites by various industries. This process is termed as bioremediation. Many experiments concerning DNA and RNA and other molecular structures in the human body also comprise of a wide area of practical biotechnology. Mapping of the genes has risen a lot of interest in this decade and with the completion of the Human Genome Project newer prospects for biotechnology has paved way. Biotechnology has found promising applications in Pharmaceutical manufacturing as well. From the production of antibiotics to the purification and separation processes for biomolecules. Biotechnology has its presence felt almost everywhere. Biotechnology plays a massive role in the field of medicine as well. As more and more genetic diseases are brought into picture it is through biotechnology that we try and find ways and means of manipulating the genes and discovering the cure for the disease. Also with the depleting natural resources for fuel and the environmental effects caused by the use of the conventional fuels can be curbed to a certain extent with the proper manifestation of biotechnology in the production of biorenewable fuel from crops. Biotechnology can speed the production of ethanol and methane for natural gas from these crops. Overall, biotechnology improves the quality of life and brings in new horizons of modern techniques in various aspects of human life. All You Need To Know Toxicology: Toxicology is the study of the interaction of chemicals with the living system. Like the name suggests, it involves the study of symptoms, mechanisms and treatments of
individuals who have been exposed to toxic and poisonous substances. This branch of study of effect of toxins and their subsequent treatment originated amongst early cave men that discovered poisonous plants and animals and used the poison in hunting or in warfare. However, it was only in the twentieth century that an independent science of toxicology emerged. It has various branches like environmental toxicology, flood toxicology and clinical toxicology. Toxicology puts a value on the risk involved when certain chemicals react with the body systems and thus curbs the potential chemical threats that can be found in everyday living. It is a combination of different fields of sciences like chemistry, biology and statistics that together bring about an understanding of the potency of a chemical. Thus the scientist, after carrying out exhaustive research on these areas of concern, finally comes to the conclusion of finding out factors that determine the outcome of an exposure to certain chemicals under certain circumstances. Toxicology involves the progressive study of measurements of biochemical and functional changes in the immune system, endocrine system and the neurological system. In toxicological studies, the researcher studies the threshold of the body that can endure a certain amount of chemical before the chemical turns out to be toxic or harmful to the body. This is referred to as dosage levels. The dosage level is determined by the chemical structure, the chemistry and the biochemistry of the chemical in question. Along with getting to know the mode of action and toxicity brought about a certain chemical substance the researcher also needs to know the biological processes and cellular processes in the body that the chemical tends to affect. Chemical concentration plays an important role in when designing toxicity studies. This may include individual chemicals or mixtures of the same. This study has been applied widely onto forensic studies. It is used in the measurement of alcohol, drugs and other poisonous substances in specimens of biological origin. Interpreting such findings can prove to be important turning points in criminal investigations. It has proved to be one of the major applications of toxicology due to increase in crime rates and other related deaths. There are numerous areas of specialty when it comes to forensic toxicology but the most sought field is postmortem toxicology. A toxicology test utilizes blood or urine samples to detect the presence of drugs. In certain cases substances like stomach contents, sweat or saliva may also be checked. Generally, laboratory methods are better able to detect drugs in urine than in blood. The reliability of toxicology tests depends on the methods used by the laboratory. The author of this article has great knowledge on Biotechnology. He has written many articles on Chromatography with the great knowledge. He has a great deal of knowledge in Pharmaceutical information as well.