Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS Investigation
Synthetic cathinones (SCs) are a group of new psychoactive substances often referred to as “legal highs” or “bath salts”, being characterized by a dynamic change, new compounds continuously emerging on the market. This creates a lack of fast screening tests, making SCs a constant concern for law enf...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Nanomaterials |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/13/17/2393 |
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| author | Ana-Maria Dragan Bogdan George Feier Mihaela Tertiș Ede Bodoki Florina Truta Maria-Georgia Ștefan Béla Kiss Filip Van Durme Karolien De Wael Radu Oprean Cecilia Cristea |
| author_facet | Ana-Maria Dragan Bogdan George Feier Mihaela Tertiș Ede Bodoki Florina Truta Maria-Georgia Ștefan Béla Kiss Filip Van Durme Karolien De Wael Radu Oprean Cecilia Cristea |
| author_sort | Ana-Maria Dragan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Synthetic cathinones (SCs) are a group of new psychoactive substances often referred to as “legal highs” or “bath salts”, being characterized by a dynamic change, new compounds continuously emerging on the market. This creates a lack of fast screening tests, making SCs a constant concern for law enforcement agencies. Herein, we present a fast and simple method for the detection of four SCs (alpha-pyrrolidinovalerophenone, <i>N</i>-ethylhexedrone, 4-chloroethcathinone, and 3-chloromethcathinone) based on their electrochemical profiles in a decentralized manner. In this regard, the voltametric characterization of the SCs was performed by cyclic and square wave voltammetry. The elucidation of the SCs redox pathways was successfully achieved using liquid chromatography coupled to (tandem) mass spectrometry. For the rational identification of the ideal experimental conditions, chemometric data processing was employed, considering two critical qualitative and quantitative variables: the type of the electrochemical platform and the pH of the electrolyte. The analytical figures of merit were determined on standard working solutions using the optimized method, which exhibited wide linear ranges and LODs suitable for confiscated sample screening. Finally, the performance of the method was evaluated on real confiscated samples, the resulting validation parameters being similar to those obtained with another portable device (i.e., Raman spectrometer). |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T23:16:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-88c2e79c58e44a7189841e9fecbd3b82 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-4991 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T23:16:29Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nanomaterials |
| spelling | doaj.art-88c2e79c58e44a7189841e9fecbd3b822023-11-19T08:36:03ZengMDPI AGNanomaterials2079-49912023-08-011317239310.3390/nano13172393Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS InvestigationAna-Maria Dragan0Bogdan George Feier1Mihaela Tertiș2Ede Bodoki3Florina Truta4Maria-Georgia Ștefan5Béla Kiss6Filip Van Durme7Karolien De Wael8Radu Oprean9Cecilia Cristea10Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDepartment of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDepartment of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDepartment of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDepartment of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDepartment of Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDepartment of Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDrugs and Toxicology Department, National Institute for Criminalistics and Criminology (NICC), Vilvoordsesteenweg 100, 1120 Brussels, BelgiumA-Sense Lab, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2010 Antwerp, BelgiumDepartment of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaDepartment of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, ‘Iuliu Hațieganu’ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Pasteur 6, 400349 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaSynthetic cathinones (SCs) are a group of new psychoactive substances often referred to as “legal highs” or “bath salts”, being characterized by a dynamic change, new compounds continuously emerging on the market. This creates a lack of fast screening tests, making SCs a constant concern for law enforcement agencies. Herein, we present a fast and simple method for the detection of four SCs (alpha-pyrrolidinovalerophenone, <i>N</i>-ethylhexedrone, 4-chloroethcathinone, and 3-chloromethcathinone) based on their electrochemical profiles in a decentralized manner. In this regard, the voltametric characterization of the SCs was performed by cyclic and square wave voltammetry. The elucidation of the SCs redox pathways was successfully achieved using liquid chromatography coupled to (tandem) mass spectrometry. For the rational identification of the ideal experimental conditions, chemometric data processing was employed, considering two critical qualitative and quantitative variables: the type of the electrochemical platform and the pH of the electrolyte. The analytical figures of merit were determined on standard working solutions using the optimized method, which exhibited wide linear ranges and LODs suitable for confiscated sample screening. Finally, the performance of the method was evaluated on real confiscated samples, the resulting validation parameters being similar to those obtained with another portable device (i.e., Raman spectrometer).https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/13/17/2393electrochemical profilesynthetic cathinonesredox pathwayon-site forensic analysischemometric analysismass spectrometry |
| spellingShingle | Ana-Maria Dragan Bogdan George Feier Mihaela Tertiș Ede Bodoki Florina Truta Maria-Georgia Ștefan Béla Kiss Filip Van Durme Karolien De Wael Radu Oprean Cecilia Cristea Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS Investigation Nanomaterials electrochemical profile synthetic cathinones redox pathway on-site forensic analysis chemometric analysis mass spectrometry |
| title | Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS Investigation |
| title_full | Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS Investigation |
| title_fullStr | Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS Investigation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS Investigation |
| title_short | Forensic Analysis of Synthetic Cathinones on Nanomaterials-Based Platforms: Chemometric-Assisted Voltametric and UPLC-MS/MS Investigation |
| title_sort | forensic analysis of synthetic cathinones on nanomaterials based platforms chemometric assisted voltametric and uplc ms ms investigation |
| topic | electrochemical profile synthetic cathinones redox pathway on-site forensic analysis chemometric analysis mass spectrometry |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/13/17/2393 |
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