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Forensic Toxicology
Published in: Forensic Toxicology 1/2019

Open Access 01-01-2019 | Short Communication

A GC–MS method for the determination of furanylfentanyl and ocfentanil in whole blood with full validation

Authors: Nektaria Misailidi, Sotiris Athanaselis, Panagiota Nikolaou, Maria Katselou, Yannis Dotsikas, Chara Spiliopoulou, Ioannis Papoutsis

Published in: Forensic Toxicology | Issue 1/2019

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Abstract

Purpose

Fentanyl analogues are popular in recent years among drug addicts and have been related to many overdoses and deaths worldwide. Furanylfentanyl, ocfentanil, acetylfentanyl and butyrfentanyl are among the most common of these drugs. Methods for the determination of furanylfentanyl and ocfentanil by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) in biological samples do not exist, and therefore, their development would be extremely useful for routine toxicological analysis.

Methods

A GC–MS method was developed and fully validated for the determination of furanylfentanyl and ocfentanil in whole blood. This method was also suitable for the determination of acetylfentanyl and butyrfentanyl. The method included solid-phase extraction after protein precipitation using acetonitrile, and it was applied during the toxicological investigation of forensic cases. Methadone-d3 was used as internal standard for the quantification of the analytes.

Results

The limit of detection and limit of quantification values were 0.30 and 1.0 ng/mL for furanylfentanyl and ocfentanil and 0.15 and 0.50 ng/mL for acetylfentanyl and butyrfentanyl, respectively. The calibration curves were linear (R2 ≥ 0.993) from 1.00 to 100 ng/mL for furanylfentanyl and ocfentanil and from 0.50 to 50.0 ng/mL for acetylfentanyl and butyrfentanyl. The recoveries were not lower than 85%, while accuracies and precisions were not greater than 6.0% (% error) and 8.0% (% relative standard deviation), respectively, for all four fentanyl analogues.

Conclusions

The developed method is the first one in the literature for the detection of furanylfentanyl and ocfentanil in biological fluids by GC–MS, and it provides very high sensitivity comparable to that by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry.
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Metadata
Title
A GC–MS method for the determination of furanylfentanyl and ocfentanil in whole blood with full validation
Authors
Nektaria Misailidi
Sotiris Athanaselis
Panagiota Nikolaou
Maria Katselou
Yannis Dotsikas
Chara Spiliopoulou
Ioannis Papoutsis
Publication date
01-01-2019
Publisher
Springer Singapore
Published in
Forensic Toxicology / Issue 1/2019
Print ISSN: 1860-8965
Electronic ISSN: 1860-8973
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11419-018-0449-2

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