Synthetic Origin of Tramadol in the Environment

Abstract

The presence of tramadol in roots of Sarcocephalus latifolius trees in Northern Cameroon was recently attributed to point contamination with the synthetic compound. The synthetic origin of tramadol in the environment has now been unambiguously confirmed. Tramadol samples isolated from tramadol pills bought at a street market in downtown Maroua and highly contaminated soil at Houdouvou were analyzed by high-precision (14)C measurements by accelerator mass spectrometry ((14)C AMS): Tramadol from the pills did not contain any radiocarbon, thus indicating that it had been synthesized from (14)C-free petroleum-derived precursors. Crucially, tramadol isolated from the soil was also radiocarbon-free. As all biosynthetic plant compounds must contain radiocarbon levels close to that of the contemporary environment, these results thus confirm that tramadol isolated from the soil cannot be plant-derived. Analyses of S. latifolius seeds, in vitro grown plants, plants from different origins, and stable-isotope labeling experiments further confirmed that synthetic tramadol contaminates the environment.

A study of the neurotoxic effects of tramadol and cannabis in adolescent male albino rats

“…10,11 Tramadol addiction is recognized to cause adverse and in some cases lethal health effects. 12 Cannabis, which is derived from the plant Cannabis sativa, has been tangled with human culture from the dawn of history. 13 Cannabis is broadly supposed as a safe recreational drug and its use is increasing among adolescents.…”

Nauclea latifolia: biological activity and alkaloid phytochemistry of a West African tree

“…In 2014, the group of M. Spiteller from the University of Dortmund (Germany) suggested that tramadol detected in the roots of N. latifolia was due to anthropogenic contamination, likely to be derived from the misuse of tramadol in ethnoveterinary practices. 13 These data validate their proposal that tramadol is widely abused in ethnoveterinary use, but do not invalidate the claim that the tramadol isolated from N. latifolia is of natural origin. The situation is confused, as the same group have detected trace amounts of tramadol, along with three mammalian metabolites (O-desmethyltramadol, N-desmethyltramadol and 4-hydroxycyclohexyltramadol), in the roots of ve plant species and in soil collected over a wide sampling area.…”

“…The situation is confused, as the same group have detected trace amounts of tramadol, along with three mammalian metabolites (O-desmethyltramadol, N-desmethyltramadol and 4-hydroxycyclohexyltramadol), in the roots of ve plant species and in soil collected over a wide sampling area. 13 Although only one sample of N. latifolia root contained sufficient tramadol to carry out this analysis, it gave a value consistent with a modern atmosphere and inconsistent with fossil origin. Independent analysis by the Dortmund lab of the sample used for the initial isolation conrmed a high tramadol content of 0.4% w/w in this sample.…”

“…13 This, however, may simply be due to a low biosynthetic potential in the plant material used and/or to the sequestering of the compounds for other purposes. Some limited feeding of distal precursors to saplings did not result in any positive evidence for incorporation.…”

“…The ethnomedical applications cover a large range of diseases, including pain-management, diabetes, infections, and malaria. 12,13 Additional experiments are required to categorically provide a clear-cut answer to this. [4][5][6][7] Recently, N. latifolia was brought under the spotlight aer the publication of the occurrence of racemic (1R,2R)-2-[(dimethylamino)methyl]-1-(3-methoxyphenyl)cyclohexanol in its roots at a high concentration.…”