Salvinorin A (SA), the psychoactive compound in Salvia divinorum, can be detected directly from intact leaves using desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) mass spectrometry without sample preparation. The method identifies SA through several ions in positive ion mode, confirmed by exact mass measurements and multi-stage tandem mass spectrometry. Direct leaf analysis also reveals other salvinorins, including salvinorin B, C, D/E, and divinatorin B. Combining thin layer chromatography with DESI-MS provides a simple approach for analyzing natural products and screening illicit substances in intact plant material.
A gas chromatography–mass spectrometry method was developed and validated to measure Salvinorin A, the main active compound in the hallucinogenic plant Salvia divinorum, in plasma, urine, saliva, and sweat. The method uses 17-alpha-methyltestosterone as an internal standard and extracts the compound with a chloroform/isopropanol mixture. It was validated over a concentration range of 0.015–5 microg/mL for plasma, urine, and saliva, and 0.01–5 microg/patch for sweat, with mean recoveries of 77.1–92.7% and precision and accuracy better than 15%. When applied to two consumers after smoking 75 mg of plant leaves, Salvinorin A was detected in urine (2.4 and 10.9 ng/mL) and saliva (11.1 and 25.0 ng/mL), but not in sweat patches.
Salvinorin A, a neoclerodane diterpenoid from the mint-family plant Salvia divinorum, is the most potent naturally occurring hallucinogen known, rivaling synthetic LSD. It is the only non-nitrogenous kappa-opioid-selective agonist. The plant, used in ancient Mexican traditions, is now widely cultivated in Europe as a recreational marijuana substitute and is illegal in some countries. Six salvinorins and three divinatorins have been isolated from its leaves. Liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization multistage mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS(n)) is used for ion fragmentation, separation, and quantitation of these diterpenes, highlighting the role of LC in herbal extract analysis and MS(n) for diagnosing natural organic product classes.
The 4-bromo analogue (25B-NBOMe) and related halogenated derivatives of N-(2-methoxy)benzyl-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine (25-NBOMe) are a class of psychedelic drugs. This study examined how electron-donating groups (halogen and dimethoxy) influence the decomposition pathway of the distonic molecular radical cation during electron ionization mass spectrometry (EI-MS) of trifluoroacetamide (TFA) derivatives. Six regioisomeric dimethoxybenzyl-substituted analogues for four series of phenethyl aromatic ring substitution patterns were prepared, derivatized, and analyzed via gas chromatography coupled with EI-MS. The analogues yield two unique radical cation fragments.