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Frinculescu A, Mercer B, Shine T, Ramsey J, Couchman L, Douce D, Frascione N, Abbate V. Assessment of a Single Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer Combined with an Atmospheric Solids Analysis Probe for the On-Site Identification of Amnesty Bin Drugs. JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR MASS SPECTROMETRY 2024; 35:1480-1489. [PMID: 38837752 PMCID: PMC11228975 DOI: 10.1021/jasms.4c00064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2024] [Revised: 05/16/2024] [Accepted: 05/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024]
Abstract
The surging number of people who abuse drugs has a great impact on healthcare and law enforcement systems. Amnesty bin drug analysis helps monitor the "street drug market" and tailor the harm reduction advice. Therefore, rapid and accurate drug analysis methods are crucial for on-site work. An analytical method for the rapid identification of five commonly detected drugs ((3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), cocaine, ketamine, 4-bromo-2,5-dimethoxyphenethylamine, and chloromethcathinone)) at various summer festivals in the U.K. was developed and validated employing a single quadrupole mass spectrometer combined with an atmospheric pressure solids analysis probe (ASAP-MS). The results were confirmed on a benchtop gas chromatography-mass spectrometry instrument and included all samples that challenged the conventional spectroscopic techniques routinely employed on-site. Although the selectivity/specificity step of the validation assessment of the MS system proved a challenge, it still produced 93% (N = 279) and 92.5% (N = 87) correct results when tested on- and off-site, respectively. A few "partly correct" results showed some discrepancies between the results, with the MS-only unit missing some low intensity active ingredients (N-ethylpentylone, MDMA) and cutting agents (caffeine, paracetamol, and benzocaine) or detecting some when not present. The incorrect results were mainly based on library coverage. The study proved that the ASAP-MS instrument can successfully complement the spectroscopic techniques used for qualitative drug analysis on- and off-site. Although the validation testing highlighted some areas for improvement concerning selectivity/specificity for structurally similar compounds, this method has the potential to be used in trend monitoring and harm reduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anca Frinculescu
- Department
of Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences, King’s College London, 150 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NH, United
Kingdom
- TICTAC
Communications Limited, Room 1.159 Jenner Wing, St. George’s University of London, Cranmer Terrace, London SW17 0RE, United
Kingdom
| | - Benjamin Mercer
- Clinical
Pharmacology, William Harvey Research Institute, Queen Mary University of London, London EC1M 6BQ, United Kingdom
| | - Trevor Shine
- TICTAC
Communications Limited, Room 1.159 Jenner Wing, St. George’s University of London, Cranmer Terrace, London SW17 0RE, United
Kingdom
| | - John Ramsey
- TICTAC
Communications Limited, Room 1.159 Jenner Wing, St. George’s University of London, Cranmer Terrace, London SW17 0RE, United
Kingdom
| | - Lewis Couchman
- Department
of Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences, King’s College London, 150 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NH, United
Kingdom
- Analytical
Services International, St. George’s
University of London, Cranmer Terrace, London SW17 0RE, United Kingdom
| | - David Douce
- Waters
Corporation, Stamford
Avenue, Wilmslow SK9 4AX, United Kingdom
| | - Nunzianda Frascione
- Department
of Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences, King’s College London, 150 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NH, United
Kingdom
| | - Vincenzo Abbate
- Department
of Analytical, Environmental and Forensic Sciences, King’s College London, 150 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NH, United
Kingdom
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Henderson A, Heaney LM, Rankin-Turner S. Ambient ionisation mass spectrometry for drug and toxin analysis: A review of the recent literature. Drug Test Anal 2024. [PMID: 38326879 DOI: 10.1002/dta.3644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 12/28/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
Ambient ionisation mass spectrometry (AIMS) is a form of mass spectrometry whereby analyte ionisation occurs outside of a vacuum source under ambient conditions. This enables the direct analysis of samples in their native state, with little or no sample preparation and without chromatographic separation. The removal of these steps facilitates a much faster analytical process, enabling the direct analysis of samples within minutes if not seconds. Consequently, AIMS has gained rapid popularity across a diverse range of applications, in particular the analysis of drugs and toxins. Numerous fields rely upon mass spectrometry for the detection and identification of drugs, including clinical diagnostics, forensic chemistry, and food safety. However, all of these fields are hindered by the time-consuming and laboratory-confined nature of traditional techniques. As such, the potential for AIMS to resolve these challenges has resulted in a growing interest in ambient ionisation for drug and toxin analysis. Since the early 2000s, forensic science, diagnostic testing, anti-doping, pharmaceuticals, environmental analysis and food safety have all seen a marked increase in AIMS applications, foreshadowing a new future for drug testing. In this review, some of the most promising AIMS techniques for drug analysis will be discussed, alongside different applications of AIMS published over a 5-year period, to provide a summary of the recent research activity for ambient ionisation for drug and toxin analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alisha Henderson
- School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK
| | - Liam M Heaney
- School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK
| | - Stephanie Rankin-Turner
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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