Multiple-Injection Capillary Zone Electrophoresis as a Fast Strategy to Determine Antinitrosating Capacity of Commercial Teas

This paper describes the use of a multiple-injection capillary electrophoresis method as a fast strategy to determine the antinitrosating capacity of nine commercial teas through nitrite quantification. The method consists of the injection of the sample followed by the injection of the control solution, employing a fused-silica capillary of 32.0 cm total length (23.5 cm effective length, 50 µm internal diameter) with background electrolyte composed of 4.0 g L-1 β-alanine and 1.5 g L-1 perchloric acid (pH 3.79) and sodium thiocyanate was used as the internal standard. Before the injections the tea samples were maintained by 1 h of incubation, at 37 °C, with sodium nitrite in perchloric acid medium (pH 2.3). In order to avoid nitrite oxidation and nitrate formation, ultra-pure nearly oxygen-free water was used to prepare the solutions. Black tea, green tea and white tea, obtained from Camellia sinensis, showed greater antinitrosating capacity (96, 93 and 89%, respectively).