Drug Testing and Analysis
2016
Piotr Adamowicz, Joanna Gieroń, Dominika Gil et al.
87 citations
New psychoactive substances (NPS) pose a challenge for forensic and clinical toxicologists, as well as for legislators. We present our findings from cases where NPS have been detected in biological material. During the three-year period 2012-2014 we found NPS in 112 cases (out of 1058 analyzed), with 75 cases in 2014 alone. The prevalence of all NPS (15.1-17.6%) was similar to amphetamine alone...
Drug Testing and Analysis
October 12, 2015
Simon D. Brandt, Pierce V. Kavanagh, Folker Westphal et al.
79 citations
1‐Propionyl‐ d ‐lysergic acid diethylamide hemitartrate (1P‐LSD) has become available as a ‘research chemical’ in the form of blotters and powdered material. This non‐controlled derivative of d ‐lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) has previously not been described in the published literature despite being closely related to 1‐acetyl‐LSD (ALD‐52), which was developed in the 1950s. This study...
Drug Testing and Analysis
September 11, 2015
Jason Wallach, Tristan Colestock, Brian Cicali et al.
13 citations
The rise in new psychoactive substances that are available as 'research chemicals' (RCs) remains a significant forensic and legislative challenge. A number of arylcyclohexylamines have attracted attention as RCs and continue to be encountered, including 3-MeO-PCP, 3-MeO-PCE and 3-MeO-PCPr. These compounds are commonly perceived as ketamine-like dissociative substances and are believed to act...
Drug Testing and Analysis
June 1, 2015
John D. Power, Pierce V. Kavanagh, John O'Brien et al.
12 citations
2-Amino-1-(4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenyl)ethan-1-one (bk-2C-B) has been recently offered for purchase by a variety of Internet retailers. This substance may be considered a cathinone analogue of the phenethylamine 2-(4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenyl)ethan-1-amine (2C-B) which suggests that it may have psychoactive effects in humans. A test purchase of bk-2C-B was carried out and its identity was...
Drug Testing and Analysis
April 15, 2015
Gavin McLaughlin, Noreen Morris, Pierce V. Kavanagh et al.
32 citations
The structurally diverse nature of the 1,2-diphenylethylamine template provides access to a range of substances for drug discovery work but some have attracted attention as 'research chemicals'. The most recent examples include diphenidine, i.e. 1-(1,2-diphenylethyl)piperidine and 2-methoxydiphenidine, i.e. 1-[1-(2-methoxyphenyl)-2-phenylethyl]piperidine (MXP, methoxyphenidine, 2-MXP) that have...
Drug Testing and Analysis
March 31, 2015
Jochen Gartz, Georg Wiedemann
13 citations
Sixty years ago, the ethnomycologist R. G. Wasson discovered an ancient mushroom cult in Oaxaca, Mexico.1, 2 The famous mycologist R. Heim classified the psychoactive mushroom species in the genera Psilocybe and the eminent natural product chemist Albert Hofmann published the isolation, structural elucidation and synthesis of the new alkaloids psilocybin and psilocin in 1958. These indole...
Drug Testing and Analysis
October 20, 2014
Gavin McLaughlin, Noreen Morris, Pierce V. Kavanagh et al.
18 citations
The recent occurrence of deaths associated with the psychostimulant cis-4,4'-dimethylaminorex (4,4'-DMAR) in Europe indicated the presence of a newly emerged psychoactive substance on the market. Subsequently, the existence of 3,4-methylenedioxy-4-methylaminorex (MDMAR) has come to the authors' attention and this study describes the synthesis of cis- and trans-MDMAR followed by extensive...
Drug Testing and Analysis
July 28, 2014
Jordi Riba, Ethan H. Mcilhenny, José Carlos Bouso et al.
96 citations
N , N ‐dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is a widely distributed plant alkaloid that displays partial agonist activity at the 5‐HT 2A receptor and induces intense psychedelic effects in humans when administered parenterally. However, self‐administration studies have reported a total lack of activity following oral intake. This is thought to be due to extensive degradation by monoamine oxidase (MAO)....
Drug Testing and Analysis
July 15, 2014
Jason Wallach, Pierce V. Kavanagh, Gavin McLaughlin et al.
26 citations
Substances with the diphenylethylamine nucleus represent a recent addition to the product catalog of dissociative agents sold as 'research chemicals' on the Internet. Diphenidine, i.e. 1-(1,2-diphenylethyl)piperidine (1,2-DEP), is such an example but detailed analytical data are less abundant. The present study describes the synthesis of diphenidine and its most obvious isomer,...
Drug Testing and Analysis
July 1, 2014
Simon D. Brandt, Leslie A. King, Michael Evans‐brown
164 citations
This special issue provides a multidisciplinary snapshot of recent developments of the broader, arguably phenomenal, changes to the drug market that have occurred in the past decade related to the rise of the new drug phenomenon. This change is largely a result of the growing commodification by entrepreneurs, and increasingly, by criminal groups, of a huge range of psychoactive substances not...
Drug Testing and Analysis
June 1, 2014
E. Menzies, S. Hudson, Paul I Dargan et al.
The classic approach of controlled volunteer studies to study drug metabolism is difficult or impossible to undertake for novel psychoactive substances (NPS), as there is generally very limited information available to allow appropriate dose finding and safety. A viable and powerful alternative is the identification and characterization of phase I and II metabolites of such drugs by examining...
Drug Testing and Analysis
May 19, 2014
Simon D. Brandt, Michael H. Baumann, John S. Partilla et al.
37 citations
During the second half of 2013, a total of 26 deaths involving para-methyl-4-methylaminorex (4,4'-DMAR) were reported to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. While aminorex and 4-methylaminorex (4-MAR) are known psychostimulants, nothing is known about the comparatively new para-methyl analog. Analytical characterization of two independent samples obtained from online...
Drug Testing and Analysis
2014
Hamilton Morris, Jason Wallach
240 citations
PCP or phencyclidine was discovered in 1956 and soon became a popular street drug. Dissociatives including PCP, ketamine, and dextromethorphan have been used non-medically for their mind-altering effects for over 60 years. Many of these compounds have also been used clinically and in legitimate research. At least 14 derivatives of PCP were sold for non-medical and illict use from the late 1960s...
Drug Testing and Analysis
2014
Claudio Vidal Giné, Iván Fornís Espinosa, Mireia Ventura Vilamala
135 citations
The use of new psychoactive substances (NPS) as adulterants has received little attention in the literature. In this paper, results from Energy Control's drug checking service documenting the use of NPS as adulterants of controlled drugs are presented, and some reflections about possible explanations for this new phenomenon, potential risks for users, and challenges that it poses are discussed....
Drug Testing and Analysis
2014
L A King
81 citations
Sixteen phenethylamines are now included in Schedules I and II of the United Nations 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances. Most of the ring-substituted compounds are in Schedule I, whereas 2C-B, amphetamine, and methamphetamine are listed in Schedule II. Substances in Schedule IV (e.g. benzphetamine) are now regarded as obsolete pharmaceutical products. They all represent the 'old...
Drug Testing and Analysis
2014
Lucy Burns, Amanda Roxburgh, Allison J Matthews et al.
78 citations
New Psychoactive Substances are now a feature of Australia's recreational drug market. Little is known, however, about the prevalence of use, the characteristics of people who use them and the relationship between the NPS and ecstasy markets. This study examined the prevalence and correlates of NPS use amongst a group of regular ecstasy users in Australia. Participants were recruited if they...
Drug Testing and Analysis
November 4, 2013
Yan Ni Annie Soh, Simon Elliott
97 citations
The evolving nature of new psychoactive substances (NPS) – often referred to as ‘legal highs’, ‘designer drugs’ or ‘bath salts’ – presents an evolving challenge for toxicologists. Apart from the detection and identification of these compounds, further analytical challenges may arise from the presence of possible metabolites or degradation products which may have to be considered when devising...
Drug Testing and Analysis
September 20, 2013
Tomás Herraiz, Simon D. Brandt
25 citations
5-(2-Aminopropyl)indole (5-IT) is a psychoactive compound that has recently been associated with several fatal and non-fatal intoxications in a number of European countries. There are indications that acute effects may include symptoms of monoaminergic (e.g. serotonin) toxicity and one mechanism involved in the increase of serotonin levels includes the inhibition of monoamine oxidase. This...
Drug Testing and Analysis
August 15, 2013
Leslie A. King, István Ujváry, Simon D. Brandt
8 citations
The concept of a 'derivative' is used widely in chemistry, where its precise meaning depends on the circumstances. However, numerous examples of derivative also occur in domestic drugs legislation, some of which stem from the 1961 United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. There is a commonly held view that only 'first-order' derivatives should be considered: substances that can be...
Drug Testing and Analysis
August 1, 2013
Dariusz Zuba, Karolina Sekuła
61 citations
This publication reports analytical properties of three new hallucinogenic substances identified in blotter papers seized from the drug market, namely 25D-NBOMe [2-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylphenyl)-N-(2-methoxybenzyl)ethanamine], 25E-NBOMe [2-(4-ethyl-2,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-N-(2-methoxybenzyl)ethanamine] and 25G-NBOMe [2-(2,5-dimethoxy-3,4-dimethylphenyl)-N-(2-methoxybenzyl)ethanamine]. These...
Drug Testing and Analysis
July 1, 2013
Dariusz Zuba, Karolina Sekuła
24 citations
This study presents and discusses the mass spectrometric, infrared spectroscopic and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic data of 2,5-dimethoxy-3,4-dimethyl-β-phenethylamine (2C-G), a new designer drug. A powder sample containing 2C-G was seized in Poland in 2011. The paper focuses on a comparison of the analytical features of 2C-G and other members of the 2C-series, in order to assess the...
Drug Testing and Analysis
April 2, 2013
Jason Wallach, Giorgia de Paoli, Adeboye Adejare et al.
21 citations
Classic examples of psychoactive arylcycloalkylamines include ketamine and 1-(1-phenylcyclohexyl)piperidine (PCP) and many others serve as important structural templates for neuropharmacological research. The recent emergence of PCP analogues that can be obtained from internet retailers requires the implementation of appropriate monitoring strategies for harm reduction purposes. Access to...
Drug Testing and Analysis
October 5, 2012
Simon Elliott, Simon D. Brandt, Sally Freeman et al.
36 citations
5‐(2‐Aminopropyl)indole (5‐IT) and 3‐(2‐aminopropyl)indole (α‐methyltryptamine, AMT) are isomeric substances and their differentiation can be a challenge under routine analytical conditions, especially when reference material is unavailable. 5‐IT represents a very recent addition to the battery of new psychoactive substances that are commercially available from online retailers. This report...
Drug Testing and Analysis
August 9, 2012
Manuela Pellegrini, Maria Concetta Rotolo, Emilia Marchei et al.
21 citations
“Magic mushrooms” is the most common name given to hallucinogenic fungi containing the psychoactive alkaloids psilocybin and psilocin. In recent years, fungis' sclerotia, commonly called “magic truffles” have become a form of supply of psychoactive Psilocybe alkaloids since Psilocybe sclerotia are not specifically included in the laws banning the sale, the purchase and the use of such...
Drug Testing and Analysis
June 26, 2012
Torsten Passie, Hinderk M. Emrich, Matthias Karst et al.
114 citations
It is known from clinical studies that some patients attempt to cope with the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by using recreational drugs. This review presents a case report of a 19-year-old male patient with a spectrum of severe PTSD symptoms, such as intense flashbacks, panic attacks, and self-mutilation, who discovered that some of his major symptoms were dramatically...