Direct and Fast Screening of New Psychoactive Substances Using Medical Swabs and Atmospheric Solids Analysis Probe Triple Quadrupole with Data-Dependent Acquisition

New psychoactive substances (NPS) have become a serious public health problem, as they are continuously changing their structures and modifying their potency and effects on humans, and therefore, novel compounds are unceasingly appearing. One of the major challenges in forensic analysis, particularly related to the problem of NPS, is the development of fast screening methodologies that allow the detection of a wide variety of compounds in a single analysis. In this study, a novel application of the atmospheric solids analysis probe (ASAP) using medical swabs has been developed. The swab–ASAP was coupled to a triple quadrupole mass analyzer working under a data-dependent acquisition mode in order to perform a suspect screening of NPS in different types of samples as well as on surfaces. The compounds were automatically identified based on the observed fragmentation spectra using an in-house built MS/MS spectra library. The developed methodology was applied for the identification of psychoactive substances in research chemicals and herbal blends. The sensitivity of the method, as well as its applicability for surface analysis, was also assessed by identifying down to 1 μg of compound impregnated onto a laboratory table. Another remarkable application was the identification of cathinones and synthetic cannabinoids on the fingers of potential consumers. Interestingly, our data showed that NPS could be identified on the fingers after being in contact with the product and even after cleaning their hands by shaking off with a cloth. The methodology proposed in this paper can be applied for routine analyses of NPS in different matrix samples without the need to establish a list of target compounds prior to analysis

Analysis of new psychoactive substances by atmospheric solids analysis probe tandem mass spectrometry

Treball Final de Grau en Química. Codi: QU0943. Curs acadèmic: 2019/2020The growth in the demand for novel non-regulated substances, called new psychoactive substances (NPS), is a concern among governments and society. These substances try to mimic effects of the traditional illicit drugs such as cocaine, cannabis or heroin, for example. They can be easily found through the Internet or physical stores, sold as “legal highs” or “research chemicals”. People consume legal highs recreationally, even though they do not know exactly their composition , which can cause a serious health problem. Despite the different types of NPS, synthetic cathinones and synthetic cannabinoids are the most popular based on seizures and number of identified compounds. In this project, a novel methodology for NPS identification has been developed, using tandem mass spectrometry equipped with atmospheric solids analysis probe, working in the data-dependent acquisition mode. In the first step, a library containing fragmentation spectra of 90 compounds was built. Then, in order to prove the applicability of the methodology, blind samples were analysed, including powder, crystal and herbal blend samples. Compound fragmentation spectra was obtained and searched for in the homemade spectral library, using for identification the MS Search option (within MassLynx software). In addition, this method was applied for NPS detection in different surfaces, such as the fingers of a person who had touched these products, using the same strategy described above. The applicability and sensitivity of the methodology for this purpose was tested. NPS were correctly identified with this workflow based on the acquired fragmentation spectra. The ASAP has proven to be a rapid technique for the suspect screening of NPS, as no sample preparation or chromatographic separation are needed