Screening of 104 New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) and Other Drugs of Abuse in Oral Fluid by LC-MS-MS

Author(s)

da Cunha, Kelly Francisco ^{[1, 2]} ; Oliveira, Karina Diniz ^{[1, 2]} ; Huestis, Marilyn A. ^[3] ; Costa, Jose Luiz ^{[2, 4]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Estadual Campinas, Fac Med Sci, UNICAMP, BR-13083859 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Estadual Campinas, UNICAMP, Campinas Poison Control Ctr, BR-13083859 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[3] Thomas Jefferson Univ, Inst Emerging Hlth Profess, Philadelphia, PA 19107 - USA

^[4] Univ Estadual Campinas, Fac Pharmaceut Sci, UNICAMP, BR-13083859 Campinas, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL TOXICOLOGY; v. 44, n. 7, p. 697-707, SEP 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 3

Abstract

New psychoactive substances (NPS) are a major public health problem, primarily due to the increased number of acute poisoning cases. Detection of these substances is a challenge. The aim of this research was to develop and validate a sensitive screening method for 104 drugs of abuse, including synthetic cannabinoids, synthetic cathinones, fentanyl analogues, phenethylamines and other abused psychoactive compounds (i.e., THC, MDMA, LSD and their metabolites) in oral fluid by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS). The Quantisal (TM) oral fluid device was used to collect oral fluid samples. The oral fluid-elution buffer mixture (500-mu L sample) was extracted with t-butyl methyl ether, and chromatographic separation was performed on a Raptor (TM) biphenyl column (100 x 2.1 mm ID, 2.7 mu m), with a total run time of 13.5 min. Limits of detection were established at three concentrations (0.05, 0.1 or 1 ng/mL) for most analytes, except for acetyl norfentanyl and mescaline (5 ng/mL). Matrix effects were generally <20% and overall extraction recoveries >60%. The highest matrix effect was observed within the synthetic cannabinoid group (PB22, -55.5%). Lower recoveries were observed for 2C-T (47.2%) and JWH-175 (58.7%). Recoveries from the Quantisal (TM) device were also evaluated for all analytes (56.7-127%), with lower recoveries noted for 25I-NBOMe, valerylfentanyl and mCPP (56.7, 63.0 and 69.9%, respectively). Drug stability in oral fluid was evaluated at 15, 60 and 90 days and at 25, 4 and -20 degrees C. As expected, greater stability was observed when samples were stored at -20 degrees C, but even when frozen, some NPS (e.g., synthetic cannabinoids) showed more than 20% degradation. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of seven authentic oral fluid samples positive for 17 different analytes. The method achieved good sensitivity and simultaneous detection of a wide range of NPS. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/02147-0 - Single drop chromatography and its coupling to mass spectrometry: instrumental strategies, development of materials, automation and analytical applications
• Grantee: Fernando Mauro Lanças
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 18/11849-0 - The toxicology of New Psychoactive Substances (NSP): epidemiology of consumption by oral fluid samples and characterization of their in vitro metabolism
• Grantee: Kelly Francisco da Cunha
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 18/00432-1 - The Toxicology of New Psychoactive Substances (NSP): epidemiology of consumption by the analysis of hair and oral fluid samples
• Grantee: José Luiz da Costa
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants