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Cárdenas-Escudero J, Galán-Madruga D, Cáceres JO. Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy as an Accurate Forensic Tool for Bone Classification and Individual Reassignment. APPLIED SPECTROSCOPY 2024:37028241277897. [PMID: 39360518 DOI: 10.1177/00037028241277897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/04/2024]
Abstract
This article provides a detailed discussion of the evidence available to date on the application of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and supervised classification methods for the individual reassignment of commingled bone remains. Specialized bone chemistry studies have demonstrated the suitability of bone elemental composition as a distinct individual identifier. Given the widely documented ability of the LIBS technique to provide elemental emission spectra that are considered elemental fingerprints of the samples analyzed, the analytical potential of this technique has been assessed for the investigation of the contexts of commingled bone remains for their individual reassignment. The LIBS bone analysis consists of the direct ablation of micrometric portions of bone samples, either on their surface or within their internal structure. To produce reliable, accurate, and robust bone classifications, however, the available evidence suggests that LIBS spectral information must be processed by appropriate methods. When comparing the performance of seven different supervised classification methods using spectrochemical LIBS data for individual reassociation, those employing artificial intelligence-based algorithms produce analytically conclusive results, concretely individual reassociations with 100% accuracy, sensitivity, and robustness. Compared to LIBS, other techniques used for the purpose of interest exhibit limited performance in terms of robustness, sensitivity, and accuracy, as well as variations in these results depending on the type of bones used in the classification. The available literature supports the suitability of the LIBS technique for reliable individual reassociation of bone remains in a fast, simple, and cost-effective manner without the need for complicated sample processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jafet Cárdenas-Escudero
- Laser Chemistry Research Group, Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Complutense University of Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
- Analytical Chemistry Department, FCNET, Universidad de Panamá, Ciudad Universitaria, Estafeta Universitaria, 3366, Panama City, Panama
| | - David Galán-Madruga
- National Centre for Environmental Health, Carlos III Health Institute, 28220 Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jorge O Cáceres
- Laser Chemistry Research Group, Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Complutense University of Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
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Nie M, Zhang T, Wang X, Zhao X, Luo C, Wang L, Zou X. High-performance liquid chromatography coupled to Orbitrap mass spectrometry for screening of common new psychoactive substances and other drugs in biological samples. J Forensic Sci 2024. [PMID: 39187963 DOI: 10.1111/1556-4029.15607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2024] [Revised: 07/26/2024] [Accepted: 08/08/2024] [Indexed: 08/28/2024]
Abstract
The complexity of the drug market and the constant updating of drugs have been challenging issues for drug regulatory authorities. With the emergence of new psychoactive substances (NPS) and the nonmedical use of prescription drugs, forensic and toxicology laboratories have had to adopt new drug screening methods and advanced instrumentation. Using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with Orbitrap mass spectrometry, we developed a screening method for common NPS and other drugs. Two milliliters of mixed solvent of n-hexane and ethyl acetate (1:1, v:v) were added to 500 μL of blood or urine sample for liquid-liquid extraction, and methanol extraction was used for hair samples. The developed method was applied to 3897 samples (including 332 blood samples, 885 urine samples, and 2680 hair samples) taken from drug addicts in a province of China during 2019-2021. For urine and blood samples, the limits of detection (LODs) ranged from 1.68 pg/mL to 10.7 ng/mL. For hair samples, the LODs ranged from 3.30 × 10-5 to 4.21 × 10-3 ng/mg. The matrix effects of urine, blood, and hair samples were in the range of 47.6%-121%, 39.8%-139%, and 6.35%-118%, respectively. And the intra-day precision was 3.5%-6.0% and the inter-day precision was 4.18%-9.90%. Analysis of the actual samples showed an overall positive detection rate of 58.9%, with 5.32% of the samples indicating the use of multiple drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manqing Nie
- Department of Public Health Laboratory Science, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
| | - Tianai Zhang
- Department of Public Health Laboratory Science, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
| | - Xuan Wang
- Department of Public Health Laboratory Science, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
| | - Xuan Zhao
- Chengdu Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
| | - Chunying Luo
- Chengdu Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
| | - Lian Wang
- Chengdu Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaoli Zou
- Department of Public Health Laboratory Science, West China School of Public Health and West China Fourth Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
- Sichuan Ding Cheng Forensic Service, Chengdu, People's Republic of China
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Lichtfouse E. Single Sample Molecular Chronology. Acc Chem Res 2024. [PMID: 38295306 DOI: 10.1021/acs.accounts.3c00665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2024]
Abstract
ConspectusThis Account presents a new discipline, single sample molecular chronology (SSMC), which studies the relative age of an individual compound occurring in several temporal pools of a single sample in complex media. Geochemists have analytically observed for a long time that several pools of the same compound, e.g., a hydrocarbon or a pesticide, can be isolated from the same sample, e.g., a sediment or a soil, to yield a free compound pool obtained by solvent extraction and then a bound compound pool after treatment of the solid residue and further extraction. Yet the study on the significance of these pools has been limited due to the inherent lack of criteria to clearly distinguish the same compound present in various pools, and, as a consequence, the existence of these pools has been criticized as resulting from a default of extraction during analytical fractionation. Our breakthrough was to distinguish isotopically several temporal pools of a plant-derived C31 n-alkane in a soil sample containing naturally 13C-labeled carbon and then to set up a method, 13C-relative dating, to calculate the relative age of these temporal pools. We observed wide differences in the relative age of the C31 n-alkane in temporal pools of a single soil sample, ranging from -6.7 years for a soil humin-bound homologue to +25.1 years for the free homologue in the coarser soil particle-size fraction. Individual compounds can thus be used as molecular clocks to determine the relative age of temporal pools from the same sample. Moreover, our findings represented the first unambiguous proof that bound compounds are cycling slower and are somehow protected in a complex organo-mineral matrix, key information for the mechanism of carbon sequestration. SSMC could be developed in all disciplines of physical, biological, and environmental sciences manipulating complex media, to study the history of individual compounds. This chronochemistry should provide new information about the origin and transformation of individual compounds in biogeochemical systems. For example, historical information on drugs or pollutants encapsulated in temporal pools of a living organism would bring about critical new knowledge about the mechanisms of disease development. Investigations require isotope tracing using any isotope in natural or artificial abundance. Methods to separate temporal pools are suggested.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Lichtfouse
- State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 28 Xianning West Road, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710049, P. R. China
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Hachem M, Mizouni R, Alawadhi IM, Altamimi MJ. Digital forensic intelligence for illicit drug analysis in forensic investigations. iScience 2023; 26:108023. [PMID: 37860773 PMCID: PMC10582396 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2023] Open
Abstract
In forensic investigations, forensic intelligence is required for illicit drug profiling in order to allow police officers and law enforcements to recognize crime developments and adjust their actions. In the present paper, we propose a novel framework for Digital Forensic Drug Intelligence (DFDI) by fusing digital forensic and drug profiling data through intelligent cycles, where a targeted and iterative collection of evidence from diverse sources is a core step in the process of drug profiling. Drug profiling data combined with digital data from seized devices collected, examined, and analyzed will allow authorities to generate valuable information about illicit drug trafficking routes and manufacturing. Such data can be stored in seized illicit drug databases to build in an intelligent way, all findings, hypotheses and recommendations, allowing law enforcement to make decisions. Our framework will potentially provide a better understanding of profiling, trafficking and distribution of illicit drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mayssa Hachem
- Department of Chemistry and Healthcare Engineering Innovation Center, Khalifa University of Sciences and Technology, Abu Dhabi P.O. Box 127788, United Arab Emirates
| | - Rabeb Mizouni
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Khalifa University of Sciences and Technology, Abu Dhabi P.O. Box 127788, United Arab Emirates
| | | | - Mohamad J. Altamimi
- Dubai Police, General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology, Drug Surveillance Center, Drug Profiling Section, Dubai P.O. Box 1493, United Arab Emirates
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Mercieca AL, Fursman HC, Alonzo M, Chadwick S, McDonagh AM. Organic impurity profiling of 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA) synthesised from helional. Forensic Sci Int 2023; 350:111788. [PMID: 37499374 DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2023.111788] [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: 03/30/2023] [Revised: 07/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
The organic impurity profile of 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA) synthesised from helional via the "twodogs" method was examined to identify route-specific and condition-specific impurities. The synthesis used a condensation reaction, followed by a Beckmann rearrangement, then Hofmann rearrangement, and then conversion to a hydrochloride salt. Two chlorinating agents were investigated for the Hofmann rearrangement reaction, trichloroisocyanuric acid (TCCA) and sodium hypochlorite. Three route-specific impurities were identified in MDA using TCCA, and two of these impurities were condition-specific such that the impurities that formed were dependent on the alcohol used as solvent. Three additional impurities were identified as non-route-specific as they have previously been identified in MDA synthesised from 3,4-methylenedioxycinnamic acid or piperonal. These non-route-specific impurities were also identified in MDA synthesised using sodium hypochlorite. No impurities were detected in MDA hydrochloride. This study identified route- and condition-specific organic impurities in MDA synthesised via the "twodogs" synthetic route using helional as starting material. The results in this study provide further understanding into the illicit synthesis of MDA and highlight the expanding nature of precursors used for illicit drug manufacture. It provides valuable information to decision makers to enact legislative measures and restrict precursors of concern.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra L Mercieca
- Centre for Forensic Science, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - Harrison C Fursman
- Centre for Forensic Science, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - Morgan Alonzo
- Centre for Forensic Science, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - Scott Chadwick
- Centre for Forensic Science, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia
| | - Andrew M McDonagh
- Centre for Forensic Science, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia.
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