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Xu Y, Lin X, Chen X, Ke X, Wu H, Fan YL, Zhou J, Xu J. Structural confirmation of position isomers 2-(2-methylaminoprolyl)benzofuran and 5-(2-methylaminopropyl)benzofuran: a combined mass spectrometric and computational study. RAPID COMMUNICATIONS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY : RCM 2024; 38:e9688. [PMID: 38212651 DOI: 10.1002/rcm.9688] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2023] [Revised: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
RATIONALE Phenylethylamines are one of the most common types of new psychoactive substances, following synthetic cannabinoids and synthetic cathinones. They are regulated in many countries because of their strong hallucinogenic effects, which can cause serious nerve damage. There is a wide variety of phenylethylamines, exhibiting rapid renewal and extremely similar structures, therefore accurate qualitative analysis of isomers is a difficult problem in current drug analysis. METHODS The dissociation pathways of the position isomers 2-(2-methylaminoprolyl)benzofuran (2-MAPB) and 5-(2-methylaminopropyl)benzofuran (5-MAPB) were investigated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution quadrupole Orbitrap MS. The dissociation patterns of the phenethylamine-based designer drugs 2-MAPB and 5-MAPB were explored and extended in this work based on MS combined with density functional theory studies. RESULTS For electron ionization mass spectrometry (EI-MS) analysis, the dissociation patterns of 2-MAPB were similar to those of 5-MAPB. For electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MSn ) analysis, the hydrogen atom on amino group was facile to form a intramolecular hydrogen bond with the oxygen atom on the parent nucleus of benzofuran in the structure of 2-MAPB, leading to higher abundance of the product ion at m/z 58. However, there was a conjugated system between the positive charge formed by the cleavage of the 5-MAPB side chain and the benzofuran ring, enabling the 5-MAPB to generate a product ion at m/z 131. Computational study showed that energy barrier and spin density difference distribution jointly control the selective dissociation in EI-MS, while different types of orbital interaction induced by intramolecular hydrogen bond led to different dissociation results in ESI-MSn . CONCLUSIONS These different dissociation patterns could be used to distinguish 2-MAPB from 5-MAPB. This could assist forensic laboratories in the differentiation and characterization of potential isomers in these kinds of compounds, especially in mixtures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Xu
- Key Laboratory of Drug Monitoring and Control of Zhejiang Province, National Narcotic Laboratory Zhejiang Regional Center, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P. R. China
| | - Xin Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Structural Chemistry, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Fuzhou, Fujian, P. R. China
- School of Chemical Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China
| | - Xianxin Chen
- Key Laboratory of Drug Monitoring and Control of Zhejiang Province, National Narcotic Laboratory Zhejiang Regional Center, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P. R. China
| | - Xing Ke
- Key Laboratory of Drug Prevention and Control Technology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Police College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P. R. China
| | - Hao Wu
- Dian Regional Forensic Science Institute, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P. R. China
| | - Yi Lei Fan
- Key Laboratory of Drug Prevention and Control Technology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Police College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P. R. China
- College of Pharmaceutical Science & Green Pharmaceutical Collaborative Innovation Center of Yangtze River Delta Region, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P. R. China
| | - Jing Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Drug Prevention and Control Technology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Police College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P. R. China
| | - Jiawei Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Structural Chemistry, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Fuzhou, Fujian, P. R. China
- School of Chemical Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P. R. China
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Antonides LH, Brignall RM, Costello A, Ellison J, Firth SE, Gilbert N, Groom BJ, Hudson SJ, Hulme MC, Marron J, Pullen ZA, Robertson TBR, Schofield CJ, Williamson DC, Kemsley EK, Sutcliffe OB, Mewis RE. Rapid Identification of Novel Psychoactive and Other Controlled Substances Using Low-Field 1H NMR Spectroscopy. ACS OMEGA 2019; 4:7103-7112. [PMID: 31179411 PMCID: PMC6547625 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.9b00302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2019] [Accepted: 03/19/2019] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
An automated approach to the collection of 1H NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) spectra using a benchtop NMR spectrometer and the subsequent analysis, processing, and elucidation of components present in seized drug samples are reported. An algorithm is developed to compare spectral data to a reference library of over 300 1H NMR spectra, ranking matches by a correlation-based score. A threshold for identification was set at 0.838, below which identification of the component present was deemed unreliable. Using this system, 432 samples were surveyed and validated against contemporaneously acquired GC-MS (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry) data. Following removal of samples which possessed no peaks in the GC-MS trace or in both the 1H NMR spectrum and GC-MS trace, the remaining 416 samples matched in 93% of cases. Thirteen of these samples were binary mixtures. A partial match (one component not identified) was obtained for 6% of samples surveyed whilst only 1% of samples did not match at all.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lysbeth H Antonides
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Rachel M Brignall
- Oxford Instruments, Tubney Woods, Abingdon, Oxfordshire OX13 5QX, U.K
| | - Andrew Costello
- Greater Manchester Police, Openshaw Complex, Lawton Street, Openshaw, Manchester M11 2NS, U.K
- MANchester DRug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Jamie Ellison
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
- Greater Manchester Police, Openshaw Complex, Lawton Street, Openshaw, Manchester M11 2NS, U.K
- MANchester DRug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Samuel E Firth
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Nicolas Gilbert
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
- MANchester DRug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Bethany J Groom
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Samuel J Hudson
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Matthew C Hulme
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
- MANchester DRug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Jack Marron
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
- MANchester DRug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Zoe A Pullen
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Thomas B R Robertson
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Christopher J Schofield
- Greater Manchester Police, Openshaw Complex, Lawton Street, Openshaw, Manchester M11 2NS, U.K
- MANchester DRug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | | | - E Kate Kemsley
- Quadram Institute Bioscience, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UA, U.K
| | - Oliver B Sutcliffe
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
- MANchester DRug Analysis and Knowledge Exchange (MANDRAKE), Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
| | - Ryan E Mewis
- School of Science and the Environment, Division of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Manchester Metropolitan University, John Dalton Building, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, U.K
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Roque Bravo R, Carmo H, Carvalho F, Bastos MDL, Dias da Silva D. Benzo fury: A new trend in the drug misuse scene. J Appl Toxicol 2019; 39:1083-1095. [PMID: 30723925 DOI: 10.1002/jat.3774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2018] [Revised: 11/23/2018] [Accepted: 12/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Benzofurans, also known by users as benzo fury or benzofury, are synthetic phenethylamines and constitute the third most prominent group of new psychoactive substances (NPS). As the use of these substances has been spread as an alternative to the classic illicit psychostimulants, such as amphetamines, their legal status was reviewed, resulting in an utter prohibition of these NPS in many countries worldwide. Herein, the prevalence of abuse, chemistry, biological effects, metabolism, and the potential harms and risky behaviors associated with the abuse of benzofurans are reviewed. The congeners of this group are mainly consumed recreationally at electronic dance music parties, in polydrug abuse settings. Benzofurans preferentially act by disturbing the functioning of serotonergic circuits, which induces their entactogenic and stimulant effects and is the reason behind the considerable number of recent benzo fury-related deaths. The slight interaction of these drugs with the dopaminergic system justifies the rewarding effects of these drugs. To date, published evidence on the mechanisms of toxicity of benzo fury is very limited but a body of research is now beginning to emerge revealing an alarming public health threat regarding the abuse of these NPS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Roque Bravo
- UCIBIO, REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Toxicology, Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, Porto, 4050-313, Portugal
| | - Helena Carmo
- UCIBIO, REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Toxicology, Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, Porto, 4050-313, Portugal
| | - Félix Carvalho
- UCIBIO, REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Toxicology, Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, Porto, 4050-313, Portugal
| | - Maria de Lourdes Bastos
- UCIBIO, REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Toxicology, Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, Porto, 4050-313, Portugal
| | - Diana Dias da Silva
- UCIBIO, REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Toxicology, Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, Porto, 4050-313, Portugal
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