Journal of analytical toxicology
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U-47700 was developed by the Upjohn Co. in the 1970s as part of their search for a selective μ-opioid agonist with similar potency as morphine. U-47700 has re-emerged recently in the illicit drug market and is easily and cheaply obtained via the internet as well as on the street, many times falsely sold as another drug. Several fatalities from U-47700 have been reported in scientific literature, often in combination with other intoxicants. ⋯ Autopsy findings were consistent with opioid overdose, but toxicological examination, utilizing immunoassay and instrumental techniques, was negative for opioids. U-47700 was detected in a comprehensive alkaloid screen by GC/MS and GC-NPD, and quantitation was performed using GC-NPD on a variety of specimens to provide a full tissue distribution. Quantitation of U-47700 in this individual revealed the following: heart blood 0.26 mg/L, femoral blood 0.40 mg/L, vitreous fluid 0.09 mg/L, brain 0.38 mg/kg, liver 0.28 mg/kg and urine 4.6 mg/L.
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Case Reports
Multiple Drug-Toxicity Involving Novel Psychoactive Substances, 3-Fluorophenmetrazine and U-47700.
3-Fluorophenmetrazine (3-FPM) is a stimulant-like novel psychoactive substance (NPS) and fluorinated analog of phenmetrazine that has recently appeared on the recreational drug market, with limited published information. Likewise, the synthetic opioid U-47700 has gained popularity among recreational drug users and is frequently detected in postmortem casework. We present the case history, autopsy and toxicological findings of a fatality involving the designer drugs 3-FPM and U-47700 for the first time in the literature. ⋯ U-47700 was present in peripheral blood at a semi-quantitative concentration of 0.36 mg/L, consistent with reported U-47700 postmortem concentrations. The cause of death was considered multiple drug-toxicity (3-FPM, U-47700, amitriptyline, methamphetamine, diazepam, temazepam, flubromazolam and delorazepam) and the manner of death ruled an accident. This case illustrates the dangers of polysubstance use and discusses the potential overlap between recreational and fatal concentrations for some NPS.
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Electronic cigarette use has raised concern worldwide regarding potential health risks and its position in tobacco cessation strategies. As part of any toxicity assessment, the chemical characterization of e-liquids and their related vapors are among fundamental data to be determined. Considering the lack of available reference methods, we developed and validated several analytical procedures in order to conduct a multicomponent analysis of six e-liquid refills and their resultant vapor emissions (generated by a smoking machine), and compared them with tobacco smoke. ⋯ Regarding propylene glycol, glycerol and nicotine concentrations, the six tested e-liquids comply with the advertised composition and contain only traces of pollutants. Noticeable lower concentrations of trace elements (≤3.4 pg/mL puff), pesticides (
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Case Reports
Confirmation of Carfentanil, U-47700 and Other Synthetic Opioids in a Human Performance Case by LC-MS-MS.
Recently, it has been documented that there has been a rise in synthetic opioid abuse. Synthetic opioids are compounds that were created to act as agonists for the opioid receptors. Like synthetic cannabinoids, most of these compounds were created by research groups or pharmaceutical companies in an attempt to find compounds that have medicinal use. ⋯ Further testing using a validated liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) assay, confirmed the presence of carfentanil, furanyl fentanyl, para-fluoroisobutyryl fentanyl, U-47700 and its metabolite. To the author's knowledge, this is the first report of a DUI cases where carfentanil, U-47700 and other synthetic opioids were confirmed and described in a human performance blood sample. This case demonstrates the need to supplement routine toxicological analyses with a sensitive methodology that can detect synthetic opioids in human performance cases where opioid use may be implicated.
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Comparative Study
Comparative Evaluation of Drug Deposition in Hair Samples Collected from Different Anatomical Body Sites.
In this study, we focused on the validation of a method for the simultaneous detection and quantification of cannabinoids, cocaine and opiates in hair as well as on the distribution of the drugs deposition in hair collected from different anatomical body sites. The proposed analytical procedure was validated for various parameters such as selectivity, linearity, limit of quantification, precision, accuracy, matrix effect and recovery. Four hundred and eighty-one samples were collected during 2010-2015 from 231 drug abusers. ⋯ Statistically significant differences in the mean detected levels were noticed for morphine and heroin between head and pubic hair and also for cocaine and benzoylecgonine, between head and axillary hair samples. Moreover, the ratio of MAM to morphine and THC to cannabinol seems to correlate statistically with the total opiate or cannabinoid detected concentrations. The above differences could be attributed to several parameters associated with the structure, morphology, growth rate and other characteristics of the collected hair.