Postmortem tissue distribution of acetyl fentanyl, fentanyl and their respective nor-metabolites analyzed by ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry
Autor: | Laura S. Hair, Justin L. Poklis, Alphonse Poklis, Elise Arbefeville, Julia Pearson, Kelly Devers, Michele Merves, Carl E. Wolf, Leszek Chrostowski, Mary Mainland |
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Rok vydání: | 2015 |
Předmět: |
Adult
Narcotics medicine.drug_class Urine Pharmacology Tandem mass spectrometry High-performance liquid chromatography Article Pathology and Forensic Medicine Fentanyl Designer Drugs Forensic Toxicology Tandem Mass Spectrometry medicine Distribution (pharmacology) Bile Humans Acetyl fentanyl Tissue Distribution Brain Chemistry Chromatography Chemistry Forensic toxicology Middle Aged Designer drug Vitreous Body Liver Postmortem Changes Law medicine.drug Chromatography Liquid |
Zdroj: | Forensic science international. 257 |
ISSN: | 1872-6283 |
Popis: | In the last two years, an epidemic of fatal narcotic overdose cases has occurred in the Tampa area of Florida. Fourteen of these deaths involved fentanyl and/or the new designer drug, acetyl fentanyl. Victim demographics, case histories, toxicology findings and causes and manners of death, as well as, disposition of fentanyl derivatives and their nor-metabolites in postmortem heart blood, peripheral blood, bile, brain, liver, urine and vitreous humor are presented. In the cases involving only acetyl fentanyl (without fentanyl, n=4), the average peripheral blood acetyl fentanyl concentration was 0.467 mg/L (range 0.31 to 0.60 mg/L) and average acetyl norfentanyl concentration was 0.053 mg/L (range 0.002 to 0.086 mg/L). In the cases involving fentanyl (without acetyl fentanyl, n=7), the average peripheral blood fentanyl concentration was 0.012 mg/L (range 0.004 to 0.027 mg/L) and average norfentanyl blood concentration was 0.001 mg/L (range 0.0002 to 0.003 mg/L). In the cases involving both acetyl fentanyl and fentanyl (n=3), the average peripheral blood acetyl fentanyl concentration was 0.008 mg/L (range 0.006 to 0.012 mg/L), the average peripheral blood acetyl norfentanyl concentration was 0.001 mg/L (range 0.001 to 0.002 mg/L), the average peripheral blood fentanyl concentration was 0.018 mg/L (range 0.015 to 0.021mg/L) and the average peripheral blood norfentanyl concentration was 0.002 mg/L (range 0.001 mg/L to 0.003 mg/L). Based on the toxicology results, it is evident that when fentanyl and/or acetyl fentanyl were present, they contributed to the cause of death. A novel ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) method to identify and quantify acetyl fentanyl, acetyl norfentanyl, fentanyl and norfentanyl in postmortem fluids and tissues is also presented. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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