Application of a nucleophilic substitution rection for spectrofluorimetric quantification of ketamine in pharmaceutical and plasma matrices.
Reem M Alnemari, Maram H Abduljabbar, Yusuf S Althobaiti, Farooq M Almutairi, Muneef M Aldhafeeri, Atiah H Almalki, Sherif Ramzy
Scientific Reports December 30, 2024 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-82427-2 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Method development and validation Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Ketamine Esketamine |
| Keywords | Date-rape drug Drug addiction Eco-friendly spectrofluorimetric method Super k Drug detection Forensic science Ketamine testing Green chemistry Pharmaceutical analysis |
| Key points | A spectrofluorimetric method using NBD-Cl detects ketamine at concentrations as low as 2.37 ng/mL in pharmaceutical and plasma samples, with high precision, accuracy, and environmental friendliness. |
Abstract
Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic drug that is abused by teenagers and young adults, commonly for recreational purposes in dance clubs, to generate euphoria and dissociation, and sometimes employed as a date-rape drug. Herein, a highly sensitive, and environmentally friendly spectrofluorimetric method was developed for detection of ketamine in pharmaceutical and plasma samples. The technique is based on a nucleophilic substitution reaction occurring between ketamine and NBD-Cl (4-chloro-7-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole), resulting in the formation of a fluorescent derivative that exhibits detectability at a remarkable level. The resultant derivative demonstrates its maximum emission intensity at 543 nm upon excitation at a wavelength of 481 nm. Upon optimizing the reaction parameters, a linear relationship was established between the fluorescence intensity of the formed derivative and the concentrations of ketamine within the specified range of 10 - 250 ng/mL. The method demonstrated exceptional sensitivity with detection and quantitation limits of 2.37 ng/mL and 7.18 ng/mL, respectively, allowing for the detection of ketamine in both pharmaceutical and plasma samples. The method was precise (%RSD < 1) accurate (%R = 99.74%) and robust (% R ± SD from 98.00 ± 1.11 to 99.97 ± 0.75). Furthermore, the developed method was compared to the reported method, with the results indicating that the suggested method is more sensitive and ecologically benign.