Electrooxidation of New Synthetic Cannabinoids - Voltammetric Determination of Drugs in Seized Street Samples and Artificial Saliva
At a Glance
Section titled āAt a Glanceā| Metadata | Details |
|---|---|
| Publication Date | 2016-02-24 |
| Journal | Analytical Chemistry |
| Authors | Marina Dronova, Evgeny Smolianitski, Ovadia Lev |
| Institutions | Hebrew University of Jerusalem |
| Citations | 67 |
Abstract
Section titled āAbstractāThe electrochemical sensing of new psychoactive substances, synthetic cannabinoids (SCs), commonly marketed under the trade name āSpiceā is explored for the first time. The electrooxidative transformations of 11 new indole and indazole SCs which are currently the predominant illicit smoking mixtures on the drug market is performed using cyclic and differential pulse voltammetry with various commercially available electrodes (Pt, GC, Bdd). It is found that SCs exhibit voltammetric responses that can be used for their detection in smoking mixtures and artificial saliva with limits of detection in the nanomolar range. The indole-based SCs exhibited an anodic peak at ā¼1.5 V (vs Ag/Ag(+)) and ā¼1.2 V (vs Ag/AgCl) in acetonitrile and artificial saliva, respectively, and the indazoles exhibited corresponding peaks at ā¼1.7 V and ā¼1.5 V. The voltammetric procedure was evaluated by prescreening of SCs in 12 confiscated street samples that were also independently analyzed by GC-MS and LC-MS techniques. A good agreement between the three analytical protocols was found. Voltammetry provides a tool for the prescreening of synthetic cannabinoid derivatives in seized materials and biological samples.