Detection of drugs of abuse by Raman spectroscopy

West, Matthew J.; Went, Michael J.

doi:10.1002/dta.217

Cited by 69 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 45 publications

(57 reference statements)

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“…[8][9][10] It is therefore important to measure the levels of tramadol in human body fluids and this is currently achieved using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). [14][15][16][17] The aim of this study was to investigate whether it was possible to develop a SERS based portable assay for tramadol at concentrations found in urine after its administration. By contrast the vibrational spectroscopic technique of Raman spectroscopy is readily portable and the Raman spectrum of a compound provides a molecularly specific fingerprint that can be used for the identification of the compound and its quantification.…”

Section: Generalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection and quantification of the opioid tramadol in urine using surface enhanced Raman scattering

Alharbi

Goodacre

2015

Analyst

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There is an on going requirement for the detection and quantification of illicit substances. This is in particular the case for law enforcement where portable screening methods are needed and there has been recent interest in breath tests for a range of narcotics. In this study we first developed surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) for the detection of tramadol in water and establish robust and reproducible methods based on silver hydroxylamine colloid. We used 0.5 M NaCl as the aggregating agent, with the pH ∼ 7.0 and SERS data were collected immediately (i.e., the analyte association and colloid aggregation times were zero). The limit of detection was rather high and calculated to be 5 × 10(-4) M which would not be practical in the field. Undeterred we continued with spiking tramadol in artificial urine and found that no aggregating agent or modification of pH was necessary. Indeed aggregation occurred spontaneously due to the complexity of the medium which is rich in multiple salts, which are commonly used for SERS. We estimated the limit of detection in artificial urine to be 2.5 × 10(-6) M which is equivalent to 657.5 ng mL(-1) and very close to the levels typically found in individuals who use tramadol for pain relief. We believe this opens up opportunities for testing SERS in real world samples and this will be an area of future study.

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Section: Generalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection and quantification of the opioid tramadol in urine using surface enhanced Raman scattering

Alharbi

Goodacre

2015

Analyst

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“…This optical methodology has proven successful for the identification of a variety of materials relevant to forensic investigations such as inks, 1 paints, 2 fibers, 3, 4 illicit drugs, 5 explosives 6 and gunshot residue. 7 In the past few years, the use of Raman spectroscopy to identify human body fluids, an important component of many crime scene investigations, has been proposed and demonstrated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

NIR Raman spectra of whole human blood: effects of laser-induced and in vitro hemoglobin denaturation

et al. 2013

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Care must be exercised in the use of Raman spectroscopy for the identification of blood in forensic applications. The 785 nm excited Raman spectra of dried whole human blood are shown to be exclusively due to oxyhemoglobin (oxyHb) or related hemoglobin denaturation products. Raman spectra of whole blood are reported as a function of incident 785 nm laser power and features attributable to heme aggregates are observed for fluences on the order of 104 W/cm2 and 20 sec signal collection times. In particular, the formation of this local heating induced heme aggregate product is indicated by a red-shifting of several heme porphyrin ring vibrational bands, the appearance of a large broad band at 1248 cm−1, the disappearance of the Fe-O2 stretching and bending bands, and the observation of a large overlapping fluorescence. This denaturation product is also observed in the low power excited Raman spectrum of older ambient air exposed bloodstains (≥ two weeks). The 785 nm excited Raman spectrum of methemoglobin whole blood is reported and increasing amounts of this natural denaturation product can also be identified in dried whole blood Raman spectra particularly when the blood has been stored prior to drying. These results indicate that to use 785 nm excited Raman spectra as an identification methodology for forensic applications to maximum effectiveness, incident laser powers need to be kept low to eliminate variable amounts of heme aggregate spectral components contributing to the signal and the natural aging process of hemoglobin denaturation needs to be accounted for. This also suggests that there is a potential opportunity for 785 nm excited Raman to be a sensitive indicator of dried bloodstain age at crime scenes.

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“…The advances in the detection and identification of drugs of abuse for forensic purposes using Raman spectroscopy have been reviewed, emphasizing the desirable characteristics of the technique of choice for forensic applications, such as preserving the chain of custody, performing nondestructive analysis and offering the possibility of in situ rapid determination and quantification of the purity of a drug. These applications include identification and quantification of drugs of abuse in different types of forensic evidence, including bulk street drugs and traces found in drinks, fibers/clothing, fingerprints, fingernails, banknotes and body fluids.…”

Section: Raman Spectroscopy In Forensic Toxicologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Raman spectroscopy in forensic analysis: identification of cocaine and other illegal drugs of abuse

Penido

Pacheco

Lednev

et al. 2016

J Raman Spectroscopy

148

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*Current forensic methods for detecting and identifying cocaine and other drugs of abuse are destructive, so evidence cannot be re-analyzed. Raman spectroscopy, based on inelastic light scattering, allows for rapid, inexpensive and nondestructive analysis in forensic science. This review presents the state-of-the-art use of Raman spectroscopy as a confirmatory method for the identification of cocaine and other drugs of abuse in seized samples, including hidden compounds in legal materials such as beverages and clothes, among others, used for trafficking. Quantitative Raman spectroscopy is used to determine the actual drug concentrations in street cocaine and crack rocks and to identify possible adulterants in these samples for forensic toxicology and criminalistics. Finally, recent developments in Raman spectrometers (portable instruments and new excitation wavelengths) and advancements in data analysis offer exciting opportunities for new applications of Raman spectroscopy in the identification and quantification of drugs of abuse, including investigations conducted immediately at the scene of a crime.

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Detection of drugs of abuse by Raman spectroscopy

Cited by 69 publications

References 45 publications

Detection and quantification of the opioid tramadol in urine using surface enhanced Raman scattering

Detection and quantification of the opioid tramadol in urine using surface enhanced Raman scattering

NIR Raman spectra of whole human blood: effects of laser-induced and in vitro hemoglobin denaturation

Raman spectroscopy in forensic analysis: identification of cocaine and other illegal drugs of abuse

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