Synthesis, full chemical characterisation and development of validated methods for the quantification of the components found in the evolved “legal high” NRG-2

Khreit, Osama I. G.; Irving, Craig; Schmidt, E. T.; Parkinson, John A.; Daéid, Niamh Nic; Sutcliffe, Oliver B.

doi:10.1016/j.jpba.2011.11.004

Cited by 24 publications

(61 citation statements)

References 19 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The achieved LOQ levels (10 ng/mL for methylone and mephedrone and 5 ng/mL for MDPV) were adequate for the execution of our pharmacokinetic study and are similar to those reported using a more sensitive mass spectrometer (13) and more sensitive than other previously published methods (42,46). Additionally, the limit of detection (LOD) was 5 ng/mL for methylone and mephedrone and 1 ng/mL for MDPV.…”

Section: Methods Validationsupporting

confidence: 82%

Quantification of Synthetic Cathinones in Rat Brain Using HILIC–ESI-MS/MS

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The abuse of synthetic cathinones, formerly marketed as "bath salts", has emerged over the last decade. Three common drugs in this class include 3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), 4-methylmethcathinone (mephedrone), and 3,4-methylenedioxymethcathinone (methylone). An LC-MS/MS method has been developed and validated for the simultaneous quantification of MDPV, mephedrone, and methylone in brain tissue. Briefly, MDPV, mephedrone, methylone, and their deuterium-labeled analogs were subjected to solid phase extraction (SPE) and separated using an HILIC Silica Column. The HPLC was coupled to a Shimadzu IT-TOF (ion trap-time of flight) system with the electrospray source running in positive mode (+ESI). The method was validated for precision, accuracy, and extraction efficiency. All inter-day and intra-day % RSD (percent relative standard deviation) and % error values were less than 15% and extraction efficiency exceeded 80%. These conditions allowed for limits of detection of 1ng/mL for MDPV, and 5 ng/mL for both mephedrone and methylone. The limits of quantification were determined to be 5ng/mL for MDPV and 10 ng/mL for mephedrone and methylone. The method was utilized to evaluate the pharmacokinetics of these drugs in adult male rats following administration of a drug cocktail including MDPV, mephedrone, and methylone. All three compounds reached peak concentrations in the brain within 15 min. Although methylone and mephedrone were administered at the same dose, the peak concentration (C max ) of mephedrone in the brain was significantly higher than that for methylone, as was the area under the curve (AUC). In summary, this quick and sensitive method for measuring synthetic cathinones may be used for future pharmacokinetic investigations of these drugs in target tissue.

show abstract

Section: Methods Validationsupporting

confidence: 82%

Quantification of Synthetic Cathinones in Rat Brain Using HILIC–ESI-MS/MS

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…44 Earlier reports in Denmark, Pedersen et al 35 presented an automated solid-phase extraction (SPE) and ultra-highperformance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) with time of flight-mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) screening method for 256 illicit compounds in blood and 95 of these compounds were validated with regard to matrix effects, extraction recovery, and process efficiency with the limit of detection (LOD) ranging from 0.001 to 0.1 mg kg −1 . 3,23 There has also been work using chromatographic methods on the detection of cathinone based "legal Commonly abused drugs such as amphetamine, cocaine, and frequent types of benzodiazepines were the major findings.…”

Section: Synthetic Cathinonesmentioning

confidence: 99%

An overview of recent developments in the analytical detection of new psychoactive substances (NPSs)

Smith

Sutcliffe

Banks

2015

Analyst

Self Cite

123

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

New psychoactive substances (NPSs), sometimes referred to as "legal highs" in more colloquial environments/the media, are a class of compounds that have been recently made available for abuse (not necessarily recently discovered) which provide similar effects to the traditional well studied illegal drugs but are not always controlled under existing local, regional or international drug legislation. Following an unprecedented increase in the number of NPSs in the last 5 years (with 101 substances discovered for the first time in 2014 alone) its, occasionally fatal, consequences have been extensively reported in the media. Such NPSs are typically marketed as 'not for human consumption' and are instead labelled and sold as plant food, bath salts as well as a whole host of other equally nondescript aliases in order to bypass legislative controls. NPSs are a new multi-disciplinary research field with the main emphasis in terms of forensic identification due to their adverse health effects, which can range from minimal to life threatening and even fatalities. In this mini-review we overview this recent emerging research area of NPSs and the analytical approaches reported to provide detection strategies as well as detailing recent reports towards providing point-of-care/in-the-field NPS ("legal high") sensors.

show abstract

“…1 These substances can be purchased through the Internet, as cheap and legal replacements for controlled stimulants such as methamphetamine and MDMA. 3,4 However, many of these second generation products have been found to contain structurally related cathinone derivatives that are themselves, like naphyrone, controlled substances. mephedrone (4-MMC, 2a) and 4-MEC (2b); Scheme 1) have become controlled in many countries worldwide.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection and quantification of new psychoactive substances (NPSs) within the evolved “legal high” product, NRG-2, using high performance liquid chromatography-amperometric detection (HPLC-AD)

Zuway

Smith

Foster

et al. 2015

Analyst

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The global increase in the production and abuse of cathinone-derived New Psychoactive Substances (NPSs) has developed the requirement for rapid, selective and sensitive protocols for their separation and detection. Electrochemical sensing of these compounds has been demonstrated to be an effective method for the in-field detection of these substances, either in their pure form or in the presence of common adulterants, however, the technique is limited in its ability to discriminate between structurally related cathinone-derivatives (for example: (±)-4′-methylmethcathinone (4-MMC, 2a) and (±)-4′-methyl-N-ethylmethcathinone (4-MEC, 2b) when they are both present in a mixture. In this paper we demonstrate, for the first time, the combination of HPLC-UV with amperometric detection (HPLC-AD) for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of 4-MMC and 4-MEC using either a commercially available impinging jet (LC-FC-A) or custom-made iCell channel (LC-FC-B) flow-cell system incorporating embedded graphite screen-printed macroelectrodes. The protocol offers a cost-effective, reproducible and reliable sensor platform for the simultaneous HPLC-UV and amperometric detection of the target analytes. The two systems have similar limits of detection, in terms of amperometric detection [LC-FC-A: 14.66 μg mL(-1) (2a) and 9.35 μg mL(-1) (2b); LC-FC-B: 57.92 μg mL(-1) (2a) and 26.91 μg mL(-1) (2b)], to the previously reported oxidative electrochemical protocol [39.8 μg mL(-1) (2a) and 84.2 μg mL(-1) (2b)], for two synthetic cathinones, prevalent on the recreational drugs market. Though not as sensitive as standard HPLC-UV detection, both flow cells show a good agreement, between the quantitative electroanalytical data, thereby making them suitable for the detection and quantification of 4-MMC and 4-MEC, either in their pure form or within complex mixtures. Additionally, the simultaneous HPLC-UV and amperometric detection protocol detailed herein shows a marked improvement and advantage over previously reported electroanalytical methods, which were either unable to selectively discriminate between structurally related synthetic cathinones (e.g. 4-MMC and 4-MEC) or utilised harmful and restrictive materials in their design.

show abstract

Synthesis, full chemical characterisation and development of validated methods for the quantification of the components found in the evolved “legal high” NRG-2

Cited by 24 publications

References 19 publications

Quantification of Synthetic Cathinones in Rat Brain Using HILIC–ESI-MS/MS

Quantification of Synthetic Cathinones in Rat Brain Using HILIC–ESI-MS/MS

An overview of recent developments in the analytical detection of new psychoactive substances (NPSs)

Detection and quantification of new psychoactive substances (NPSs) within the evolved “legal high” product, NRG-2, using high performance liquid chromatography-amperometric detection (HPLC-AD)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About