Piroxicam (PRX) was determined in pharmaceutical capsules with differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) in a three electrode system consisting of a pencil graphite electrode (PGE) as working electrode, a Pt wire and a reference electrode of Ag/AgCl/KCl 3 M. An irreversible oxidation peak was observed in Epa c.a. 0.6 V, which correlates to the oxidation of PRX. The coefficient of linear correlation obtained was 0.9946, with limit of detection of 2.1 µM and limit of quantification of 4.7 µM. PGE assays showed good analytical performance compared to high performance liquid chromatography and spectrophotometry, showing the potential to be further developed and employed in quick and simple analyses.

Sanitary landfill leachate (LL) composition varies according to climate variables variation, solid waste characteristics and composition, and landfill age. Leachate treatment is essentially carried out trough biological and physicochemical processes, which have showed variability in efficiency and appear a costly solution for the management authorities. Electrocoagulation (EC) seems a suitable solution for leachate treatment taking into account the characteristics of the liquor. One of the problems of EC is the electrode passivation, which affects the longevity of the process. One solution to this problem could be the replacement of the electrode by one made of recyclable material, which would make it possible to change it frequently and at a lower cost. The objective of the present work was to evaluate the removal of heavy metals (As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Pb, Mn, Ni, Se and Zn) and coliforms from a LL by EC using electrodes made from steel swarf (SfE) up to 8 h. Removal efficiencies of detected heavy metals were 51%(Cr), 59%(As), 71%(Cd), 72%(Zn), 92%(Ba), 95%(Ni) and >99%(Pb). The microbial load of coliforms in leachate was reduced from 10.76 × 10⁴ CFU/mL (raw leachate) to less than 1 CFU/mL (after treatment with SfE) (i.e., approximately 100% reduction). The use of SfE in EC of LL is very effective in removing heavy metals and coliforms and can be used as alternative treatment solution for such effluents.

Background: Marbofloxacin (MAR) is an antimicrobial for veterinary use, and it does not have a monograph in an official compendium for the pharmaceutical form in tablets. Objective: In this context, the objective of this work was to develop and validate an effective, eco-friendly, and indicative of stability method by spectrophotometry in the ultraviolet region (UV) for quantitative evaluation of MAR in tablets. Method: Purified water–ethanol (80:20, v/v) as a diluent, quartz cubette and 296 nm were used. Results: The method was linear in the range of 3–9 µg/mL (0.9994) with detection and quantification limits of 0.39 and 1.18 µg/mL, respectively, selective in the comparison of standard and sample, precise in intraday (RSD 1.20%), interday (RSD 1.68%), and between analysts (RSD 3.26%) levels, exact with average recovery of 100.39% and robust against small changes in wavelength, diluent concentration, and the use of the ultrasound device. The forced degradation test (sample solutions prepared in 0.1 M HCl, 0.1 M NaOH, and neutral conditions and kept at 60°C during 2 h, and exposure to UV 254 nm lamp at ambient temperature during 2 h) showed that the proposed method is able to assess the susceptibility of MAR. Conclusions: The method can be reliably applied in routine analysis of MAR in tablets as well as being stable, eco-friendly, effective, accessible, and following the principles of green analytical chemistry. Highlights: MAR, an antimicrobial for veterinary use, does not have a monograph in an official compendium for final product evaluation. The use of MAR-based products with inadequate quality can leave residues in foods of animal origin and can also contribute to microbial resistance. So, an ecologically correct and reliable method was developed to evaluate MAR in a final product.

Background: Marbofloxacin (MAR) is an antimicrobial belonging to the fluoroquinolone class and is marketed in the form of tablets. There is no microbiological monograph in official compendia to evaluate the potency of the final product. Furthermore, the literature is scarce in this context. Objective: The objective is to develop and validate a microbiological method by turbidimetry to evaluate the potency of MAR-based tablets, based on the principles of green analytical chemistry. Methods: Purified water–ethanol (9 + 1, v/v) was used as diluent to prepare the MAR solutions at concentrations of 0.25, 0.8, and 2.56 µg/mL, brain heart infusion (BHI) broth as culture media, E. coli American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) 25922 at 10% and incubation in a shaker at 37°C for 4 h were used in the method. Results: The method was: linear in the range of 0.25 to 2.56 µg/mL; selective against the sample adjuvants; precise (intra-day RSD 2.26%, inter-day RSD 3.49%, and inter-analyst RSD 3.59%); accurate with a recovery of 100.20%; and robust against changes in culture medium volume in the tube, shaker rotation, and incubation temperature in the shaker. The potency of MAR tablets was 96.98% using the proposed method. Conclusion: The turbidimetric method developed is a new, fast, and optimized option to the routine QC of MAR in tablets, since it allows the evaluation of the drug's potency in the final product and can be used to complement the results of the physicochemical analysis, in addition to being a green and sustainable alternative. Highlights: The work shows an ecological and green alternative to the routine microbiological pharmaceutical analysis of MAR tablets.

The hospital environment requires special attention to air quality, since it needs to be healthy for the protection of patients and health professionals in order to prevent them against hospital infections. The objective of this study was to isolate, identify and evaluate the susceptibility profile of isolated fungi from two hospitals. For air sampling the impaction (Spin Air, IUL®) and passive sedimentation methods were used. For the isolation of fungi from surfaces, contact plates (RODAC®) were used. The identification of the fungi was performed by observing the macroscopic and microscopic aspects of the colonies, whereas for better visualization of fruiting structures, the microculture technique was performed on slides. To evaluate the susceptibility profile, the broth microdilution test recommended by CLSI was performed. Thirty-five isolates were identified: Aspergillus flavus (12), Aspergillus fumigatus (11), Aspergillus niger (1), Aspergillus terreus (2), Penicillium spp. (7), and Fusarium spp. (2) in the hospitals evaluated. All isolates had a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) more than 128 μg/ml for fluconazole; 0.5 to 4.0 μg/ml for amphotericin B (hospital 1), and all isolates from haospital 2 had MIC ≥2.0 μg/ml. In hospital 1, MIC for posaconazole ranged from 0.25 μg/ml to ≥32 μg/ml, and hospital 2 ranged from 0.5 to 1.0 μg/ml. The monitoring and evaluation of air quality and surfaces are essential measures for prevention and control of hospital infections, as these microorganisms are becoming increasingly resistant to antimicrobial agents, thus making treatment difficult, especially in immunocompromised individuals.