Synthesis and characterization of 5-methoxy-2-methyl-N,N-dialkylated tryptamines

Metabolism of the tryptamine-derived new psychoactive substances 5-MeO-2-Me-DALT, 5-MeO-2-Me-ALCHT, and 5-MeO-2-Me-DIPT and their detectability in urine studied by GC-MS, LC-MSn , and LC-HR-MS/MS

Many N,N-dialkylated tryptamines show psychoactive properties and were encountered as new psychoactive substances. The aims of the presented work were to study the phase I and II metabolism and the detectability in standard urine screening approaches (SUSA) of 5-methoxy-2-methyl-N,N-diallyltryptamine (5-MeO-2-Me-DALT), 5-methoxy-2-methyl-N-allyl-N-cyclohexyltryptamine (5-MeO-2-Me-ALCHT), and 5-methoxy-2-methyl-N,N-diisopropyltryptamine (5-MeO-2-Me-DIPT) using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), liquid chromatography coupled with multistage accurate mass spectrometry (LC-MSⁿ ), and liquid chromatography-high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (LC-HR-MS/MS). For metabolism studies, urine was collected over a 24 h period after administration of the compounds to male Wistar rats at 20 mg/kg body weight (BW). Phase I and II metabolites were identified after urine precipitation with acetonitrile by LC-HR-MS/MS. 5-MeO-2-Me-DALT (24 phase I and 12 phase II metabolites), 5-MeO-2-Me-ALCHT (24 phase I and 14 phase II metabolites), and 5-MeO-2-Me-DIPT (20 phase I and 11 phase II metabolites) were mainly metabolized by O-demethylation, hydroxylation, N-dealkylation, and combinations of them as well as by glucuronidation and sulfation of phase I metabolites. Incubations with mixtures of pooled human liver microsomes and cytosols (pHLM and pHLC) confirmed that the main metabolic reactions in humans and rats might be identical. Furthermore, initial CYP activity screenings revealed that CYP1A2, CYP2C19, CYP2D6, and CYP3A4 were involved in hydroxylation, CYP2C19 and CYP2D6 in O-demethylation, and CYP2C19, CYP2D6, and CYP3A4 in N-dealkylation. For SUSAs, GC-MS, LC-MSⁿ , and LC-HR-MS/MS were applied to rat urine samples after 1 or 0.1 mg/kg BW doses, respectively. In contrast to the GC-MS SUSA, both LC-MS SUSAs were able to detect an intake of 5-MeO-2-Me-ALCHT and 5-MeO-2-Me-DIPT via their metabolites following 1 mg/kg BW administrations and 5-MeO-2-Me-DALT following 0.1 mg/kg BW dosage. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Analytical characterization of N,N-diallyltryptamine (DALT) and 16 ring-substituted derivatives

Many N,N-dialkylated tryptamines show psychoactive properties in humans and the number of derivatives involved in multidisciplinary areas of research has grown over the last few decades. Whereas some derivatives form the basis of a range of medicinal products, others are predominantly encountered as recreational drugs, and in some cases, the areas of therapeutic and recreational use can overlap. In recent years, 5-methoxy-N,N-diallyltryptamine (5-MeO-DALT) has appeared as a new psychoactive substance (NPS) and 'research chemical' whereas 4-acetoxy-DALT and the ring-unsubstituted DALT have only been detected very recently. Strategies pursued in the authors' laboratories included the preparation and biological evaluation of previously unreported N,N-diallyltryptamines (DALTs). This report describes the analytical characterization of 17 DALTs. Fifteen DALTs were prepared by a microwave-accelerated Speeter and Anthony procedure following established procedures developed previously in the authors' laboratories. In addition to DALT, the substances included in this study were 2-phenyl-, 4-acetoxy-, 4-hydroxy-, 4,5-ethylenedioxy-, 5-methyl-, 5-methoxy-, 5-methoxy-2-methyl-, 5-ethoxy-, 5-fluoro-, 5-fluoro-2-methyl-, 5-chloro-, 5-bromo-, 5,6-methylenedioxy-, 6-fluoro-, 7-methyl, and 7-ethyl-DALT, respectively. The DALTs were characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), gas chromatography (GC) quadrupole and ion trap (EI/CI) mass spectrometry (MS), low and high mass accuracy MS/MS, photodiode array detection, and GC solid-state infrared analysis, respectively. A comprehensive collection of spectral data was obtained that are provided to research communities who face the challenge of encountering newly emerging substances where analytical data are not available. These data are also relevant to researchers who might wish to explore the clinical and non-clinical uses of these substances. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

An analytical approach to the forensic identification of different classes of new psychoactive substances (NPSs) in seized materials

RATIONALE

New psychoactive substances (NPSs) are rapidly spreading worldwide, and forensic laboratories are often requested to identify new substances for which no reference standards or analytical data are available. This article describes an analytical approach that was adopted in Italy by a few collaborative centres of the Italian Early Warning System for Drugs, which has contributed many alerts for the identification of different classes of NPSs in the last 24 months.

METHODS

Seized crystals and powders were initially analysed via single quadrupole gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS), followed by liquid chromatography/high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC/HRMS) in the positive electrospray ionisation (ESI) mode at 100,000 full width at half maximum resolution (FWHM) without fragmentation to elucidate the elemental compositions of unknown molecules. Different fragmentation voltages during LC/HRMS were applied to study the accurate masses of the obtained characteristic fragments. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses were performed to identify specific isomers when necessary.

RESULTS

Some interesting examples of unknown NPSs from seizures later identified in our laboratories are reported, with special focus on those cases where analytical standards were not available during analyses. These cases include cathinones, such as 3-methylmethcathinone (3-MMC), methylone, bk-MBDB (butylone), 4-methylethcathinone (4-MEC), flephedrone, methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) and pentedrone, methoxetamine, apinaca or AKB48, benzydamine, meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (m-CPP), 5-MeO-N,N-dialkyl tryptamines, such as 5-MeO-DALT and 5-MeOMIPT, benzofurans, such as 6-APB and 4-APB, and diphenidine (identified for the first time in Europe).

CONCLUSIONS

The identification of NPSs in confiscated materials was successfully achieved via GC/MS coupled with LC/HRMS and, in a few cases, NMR analyses. The availability of GC/MS libraries is of great assistance in the identification of new drugs. Alternatively, the study of characteristic molecule fragments combined with the determination of their accurate masses can be a useful approach to identify unknown samples not previously analysed.

Forensic investigation of K2, Spice, and "bath salt" commercial preparations: a three-year study of new designer drug products containing synthetic cannabinoid, stimulant, and hallucinogenic compounds

New designer drugs such as K2, Spice, and "bath salts" present a formidable challenge for law enforcement and public health officials. The following report summarizes a three-year study of 1320 law enforcement cases involving over 3000 products described as vegetable material, powders, capsules, tablets, blotter paper, or drug paraphernalia. All items were seized in Arkansas from January 2010 through December 2012 and submitted to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for analysis. The geographical distribution of these seizures co-localized in areas with higher population, colleges, and universities. Validated forensic testing procedures confirmed the presence of 26 synthetic cannabinoids, 12 designer stimulants, and 5 hallucinogenic-like drugs regulated by the Synthetic Drug Prevention Act of 2012 and other state statutes. Analysis of paraphernalia suggests that these drugs are commonly used concomitantly with other drugs of abuse including marijuana, MDMA, and methamphetamine. Exact designer drug compositions were unpredictable and often formulated with multiple agents, but overall, the synthetic cannabinoids were significantly more prevalent than all the other designer drugs detected. The synthetic cannabinoids JWH-018, AM2201, JWH-122, JWH-210, and XLR11 were most commonly detected in green vegetable material and powder products. The designer stimulants methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylcathinone (methylone), and α-methylamino-valerophenone (pentedrone) were commonly detected in tablets, capsules, and powders. Hallucinogenic drugs were rarely detected, but generally found on blotter paper products. Emerging designer drug products remain a significant problem and continued surveillance is needed to protect public health.