TD-ESI-MS/MS for High-Throughput Screening of 13 Common Drugs and 4 Etomidate Analogs in Hair: Method Validation and Forensic Applications.
Toxics – April 23, 2025
Source: PubMed
Summary
Hair analysis reveals drug use patterns in just 60 seconds! A breakthrough forensic technique combines high-throughput screening with advanced mass spectrometry to detect 17 different drugs of abuse in hair samples. The method accurately identified etomidate analogs and other substances, proving faster and more reliable than traditional testing. This innovation helps law enforcement track emerging drug trends while maintaining 90% accuracy.
Abstract
This study established a dual analytical workflow integrating thermal desorption-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (TD-ESI-MS/MS) for rapid qualitative screening and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) for confirmatory quantification of 17 psychoactive substances and metabolites across six classes (opioids, amphetamine-type stimulants, cocaine, ketamine-type drugs, cannabinoids, and etomidate analogs) in hair matrices. Validation of the TD-ESI-MS/MS method demonstrated its sensitivity (limits of detection: 0.1-0.2 ng/mg) and precision (85.7% and a specificity >89.7% for the 17 analytes. UPLC-MS/MS confirmation validated the screening results with accuracy rates of 89.7-99.8%. An analysis of specimens confirmed positive identified etomidate analogs as the predominant psychoactive substances (73.6%), with a lower prevalence of amphetamine-type stimulants (12.5%), ketamine-type drugs (9.0%), and opioids (2.8%). The polydrug use patterns identified concurrent etomidate-amphetamine consumption (n = 5) and complex analog combinations (etomidate-isopropoxate-metomidate, n = 13), suggesting evolving abuse trends. Despite limitations in the temporal resolution and representativeness of the cohort, this study demonstrated the viability of TD-ESI-MS/MS for bridging forensic and public health priorities. Future work should focus on optimizing the durability of the ion source for TD-ESI and validating this method across diverse populations to enhance its generalizability.