A procedure for the determination of Phenolic compounds in extracts from the medicinal plants of the Lamiaceae family—garden sage (Salvia officinalis L.), creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum L.), wild marjoram (Origanum vulgare L.), and common balm (Melissa officinalis L.)—obtained under different extraction conditions was developed. The identification of the extracted compounds was performed and their qualitative and quantitative composition was established by HPLC with diode array and mass-spectrometric detection with consideration for the obtained characteristics of the standard samples of individual components. The test samples of medicinal herbs contained caffeic acid (0.19–0.62 mg/g) and rosmaric acid (4–23 mg/g); the highest rosmaric acid content (23 mg/g) was found in wild marjoram, and the lowest content (4 mg/g), in creeping thyme. The extracts of wild marjoram contained the greatest amounts of Phenolic compounds; rosmaric acid and luteolin-7-O-β-D-glucuronide were major components, whereas protocatechuic, 3-O-caffeoylquinic, and caffeic acids were minor components.

The review systematizes data on various extraction techniques for sample preparation in the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in environmental samples, provides a classification, and describes the capabilities of these techniques. The main versions and methods of solid-phase extraction (SPE) and liquid–liquid (LLE) extraction of structurally different PAHs from complex multicomponent systems are discussed. The variety of SPE and LLE methods, the peculiarities of their combinations with other methods, and the advantages and disadvantages of each sample preparation method are demonstrated. Chromatographic methods are preferred for detection after the solid-phase or liquid–liquid extraction of PAHs from environmental samples.

The content of free amino acids and aroma compounds present in wine and dependent on the grape variety, conditions of its growing and technology of production form its consumer properties. In this paper, the structure of interactions of amino acids and volatile organic compounds in 150 samples of natural dry red and white wines produced in the Krasnodar region, Russia, (2010-2013) was studied. The aim of this work was to comparatively evaluate the contribution of volatile compounds and amino acids to the sensory properties of wines by using regression, canonical, covariance, factor analyses, as well as principal component analysis. The list of volatile compounds, i.e., acetaldehyde, ethyl acetate, methanol, the total content of higher alcohols, acetic acid, and furfural, and such amino acids as arginine, proline, threonine was selected based on their influence on sensory properties of wines. The concentrations of volatile compounds and amino acids in wines were determined by gas chromatography and capillary electrophoresis, respectively. Sensory evaluation was conducted by experts with professional experience in wine tasting. Application of statistical methods allowed to establish intra- and inter-group correlations among amino acids and volatile compounds as well as between the groups of these compounds, which determined sensory properties of wines. More than 80% of the variability of the sensory assessment of wines is determined by the degree of relationship between the selected amino acids and volatile compounds; the contribution of amino acids to this indicator is 4.5-fold higher. The results obtained can be used to predict the sensory assessment of red and white wines based on the levels of volatile compounds and amino acids.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a class of persistent organic pollutants of water, and their determination at trace levels in the aquatic ecosystems is essential. In this work, an ultrasound-assisted dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (DLLME) procedure was suggested utilizing a binary dispersive agent for recovery of different molecular weight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from waters. The detection was carried out by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) as well as high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence and diode-array detection (HPLC-FD/PDA). The method was optimized for the extraction of analytes with respect to the mixture composition, ratios of components, ultrasonication time and centrifugation parameters. The analytical schemes for PAHs extraction from water samples using different ratios of extraction and dispersive solvents are reported. The mixture consisting of chloroform and methanol was applied for the extraction of PAHs containing two or three fused aromatic rings; the mixture of chloroform and acetonitrile is suitable for PAHs containing more than four aromatic rings. The mixture of chloroform:acetone + acetonitrile was applied in the universal scheme and allowed for the simultaneous extraction of 20 PAHs with different structures. The developed sample preparation schemes were combined with GC-MS and HPLC-FD/PDA, which allowed us to determine the analytes at low concentrations (from 0.0002 µg/L) with the recoveries exceeding 80% and relative standard deviations of about 8%. The developed methods for the determination of 20 PAHs were applied to the analysis of water samples from the Karasun Lake (Krasnodar), Azov Sea (Temryuk) and Black Sea (Sochi).

An HPLC procedure is proposed for the determination of 12 phenolic compounds in plant tissues by reversed-phase HPLC with gradient elution and UV detection. The influence of pH, composition of the mobile phase, concentration of the organic modifier, and temperature on the separation of gallic, protocatechuic, trans-ferulic, trans-caffeic acid, rutin, quercetin, dihydroquercetin, and (_)-epicatechin for 30 min is studied. The lower limit of quantification of phenolic compounds is 1–2.5 μg/L. The procedure was applied to the determination of phenolic compounds in aqueous extracts of Hypericum perforatum; its sample was found to contain protocatechuic acid, (_)-epicatechin, and also rutin.