Detection of Narcotic

substance in hair

Presented by Sushma SharmaM.Sc. Forensic (F) Science Roll no – 11

Contents Introduction Significance of Drug testing from hair Mechanisms of drug incorporation into hair Hair sample collection and preparation Separation of drugs from hair matrix Hair analysis techniques Advantages of hair analysis Disadvantages of hair analysis Case study Conclusion References

Introduction

Millions of drugs and medications have been used by the society since the very beginning. So many of peoples start using drugs excessively for their benefits.

Drug abuse a major cause of social problems worldwide. Drugs which are mainly involved in drug of abuse are narcotic substance which includes all the drugs which are prohibited by law like cocaine, amphetamine, metamphetamine, morphine, PCP, heroine etc.

Undoubtedly blood and urine are the routine samples of choice for drug analysis. Nowadays, besides blood and urine, hair is being recognized as an alternative and fundamental biological specimen for drug testing.

Hair analysis when compared to blood or urine is the non-invasive collection procedure; furthermore the sample not easily be adulterated.

It gives larger detection windows, compared to those of urine/blood.

Evaluation of long term history to short term history Some of the major drugs and there metabolites which are

detected from hairs are Amphetamines

Methamphetamines (MDMA)Cocaine (cocaine and cocaine metabolite)Cocaethylene Opiates (codeine, morphine, heroin metabolite)Phencyclidine (PCP)

Significance of Drug testing from hair

Mechanisms of Drug Incorporation into Hair

After a drug is used, it takes about 7- 10 days for the hair containing the drugs to grow out of the scalp.

The incorporation is dependent on the drug concentration.

Incorporation

Blood vessels

Sweat and sebum

external environme

nt

Hair sample collection and preparation

Checking the person identity

Collection the hair sample

Packing of samples

Paper work

Decontamination The goal of washing is to remove only the

external contaminants, dirt and grease from the surface of the hair.

Solvents used for washing are- Methanol, ethanol, acetone Sodium dodecyl sulfate solution Dichloromethane

Separation of drugs from hair matrix

Enzymatic digestion

Acidic extraction

Alkaline digestion

Applied when alkaline stable compounds, such as morphine, amphetamines and cannabinoids have to be analyzed.

Acidic extraction of drugs from hair is usually carried out with 0.1–0.6 M HCl or 0.005 H2SO4 at room temperature or 37◦C overnight. It involves the drugs like heroine and lipophilic drugs such as THC24.

Several enzymes like β-glucoronidase, proteinase K, protease E and protease VIII have been use to digest hair protein.

Hair Analysis Techniques

Screening test

Confirmatory test

Immunoassay test

GC-MSLC-MSMS-MS

Immunoassay Immunoassays are chemical tests used to detect the analyte using

an immunological reactions. It provides either a positive or negative result, indicating the presence or absence of detectable drug.

Three types of immunoassays that are in common use; Enzyme immunoassay (EIA) - detection in hair of opiates, cocaine, phencyclidine and methadone.

Fluorescence polarization immunoassay (FPIA) - detection in hair of morphine.

Radioimmunoassay (RIA) - detection of amphetamines in hair specimen.

Confirmatory TestOne a positive test result is returned using a screening method, it

should not be assumed to be 100% accurate. A second and more accurate testing method using different chemical principles has to be applied in order to confirm the results.

Gas chromatography coupled to MS

Liquid chromatograph

y coupled to MS

Tandem mass Spectroscopy

Gas chromatography coupled to MS

Gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS) is by far the most widely used analytical tool for drug determination in hair specimens.

The GC/MS testing method has the highest levels of sensitivity and specificity.

Analysis the opiates, cocaine and related drugs, amphetamines, cannabinoids, benzodiazepines, therapeutical drugs and pesticides .

Liquid chromatography coupled to MS

LC–MS is an analytical chemistry technique that combines the physical separation capabilities of liquid chromatography (or HPLC) with the mass analysis capabilities of mass spectrometry (MS).

It is capable of providing structure, molecular weight, empirical formula, and quantitative information about a specific drug.

Tandem mass Spectroscopy Tandem mass spectroscopy (MS2 ) has been a powerful tool for

detecting and confirming the presence of drugs in complex biological matrices.

In order to achieve that a low standard (0.1 ng) of each drug from the group are injected individually into the MS/MS to see if there were any interfering peaks or false positive results.

Advantages of Hair Analysis

Evaluation of long term history to short term history Hair collection is non-invasive. It is also easy to store and ship specimens. Very low risk for contamination. It is generally easily to obtain sufficient hair for

confirmation testing or reanalysis. Hair is difficult to substitute or adulterate. Hair analysis has the widest window of drug

detection. Analysis can also done after death. Result stands up in the court

Disadvantages of Hair Analysis Hair analysis cannot be used to determine levels of

drug use. Hair analysis cannot detect recent drug use (within 7

days) because of its slow growth rate. There are a limited number of laboratories offering

commercial hair testing services. It is generally not possible to use hair analysis to

reliably detect very low drug use, i.e. 2-3 times per month

Cost of testing Not easily digest it takes several days up to 10 days

Case of Hair Analysis The first case of the determination of drugs in human hair was published in the 1850s and reported the presence of arsenic in the hair of a body exhumed after 11 years.

In July of 1990, a Miami man became extremely ill after drinking an imported malted beverage from Colombia. The man went into a coma immediately after making the statement and was rushed to the hospital.

At the hospital he was diagnosed as suffering from acute cocaine intoxication after a urinalysis test.Cocaine was detected in the residue of the bottle consumed by the victim. The subject was maintained alive for 24 days. A recall of the malt beverage found an average of 30 grams of cocaine per bottle of the tampered product.

After the victim died, hair samples were collected to determine whether he was a regular cocaine user who had overdosed or the victim of a product tampering . Historical information on his drug usage was gathered by conducting segmental analysis . The high level of cocaine indicate the victim was a user of cocaine before the incident, which revealed the victim was a chronic cocaine user.

Conclusion Hair analysis has the widest window of drug

detection. Evaluation of long term history to short term

history (e.g. if urine is analyzed). The sample collection is non-invasive, it is

easy to be performed under conditions that prevent adulteration.

There are a limited number of laboratories offering commercial hair testing services so its generally not analysed.

References Baumgartner W.A., Hill B.S., and Blahd, W.H. Hair analysis for drugs of abuse. J

Forensic Sci 34(6):1433-1453, 1989.   Cooper G.A.A., Kronstrand R., and Kintz P. Society of Hair Testing guidelines for

drug testing in hair. Forensic Science International, 218 (2012), 20-24.   Chatt A., and Katz S.A. Hair Analysis: Applications in the Biomedical and

Environmental Sciences. New York: VCH, 1988. pp. 11-12. Cordero R., and Paterson S., Simultaneous quantification of opiates,

amphetamines, cocaine and metabolites and diazepam and metabolite in a single hair sample using GC-MS. Journal of Chromatography B, 850 (2006), 423-431.

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