Original article Screening for synthetic cannabinoids in hair by using LC-QTOF MS: A new and powerful approach to study the penetration of these new psychoactive substances in the population Rossella Gottardo 1 , Daniela Sorio 1 , Giacomo Musile 1 , Elisa Trapani 1 , Catia Seri 1,2 , Giovanni Serpelloni 3 and Franco Tagliaro 1 Abstract The current analytical technology for the determination of New Psychoactive Substances in biological samples is still largely inadequate, because the immunoassays are unsuitable for the detection of most of these compounds and the use of traditional gas chromatography–mass spectrometry techniques is hampered by the lack of chromatographic standards and mass fragmentation patterns. Taking advantage of the molecular recognition capability of high-resolution mass spectrometry, the present work aimed to apply liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry for the rapid identification of New Psychoactive Substances in the hair, a peculiar tissue which ‘‘keeps memory’’ of the recent history of drug intake of the subject. All the samples were screened for the presence of 50 different New Psychoactive Substances (synthetic cannabinoids, cathinones and phenethylamines), substances that had been reported officially by the National Early Warning System in the period 2009–2011. Among the 435 samples analyzed, 8 were found ‘‘positive’’ for the following compounds: JWH-018, JWH-073, JWH-081, JWH-250, JWH-122, in a broad range of concentrations (0.010–1.28 ng/mg). Results strongly support the use of hair analysis to monitor the diffusion of new psychoactive drugs in the community. Keywords hair analysis, liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry, smart drugs, synthetic cannabinoids Introduction In recent years, within the European Union and in the USA, an increasing availability of the new psycho- active products known as ‘‘Legal Highs’’ or ‘‘Herbal Highs’’ has been reported. 1–4 This new heterogeneous class of compounds is available in several types of preparations such as teas, herbal mixtures, incenses, ambient scents, energy drinks and food additives. Because of the lack of legal restrictions to their mar- keting (many compounds are not included in the schedules of controlled substances), these products are easily available in herbalist shops, in the so- called ‘‘Smart Shops’’ or through the e-commerce. For the above-mentioned reasons, these compounds (and the preparations in which they are contained) are currently named ‘‘New Psychoactive Substances’’ (NPSs), meaning that they can escape the restrictions posed by the Law. A typical example is represented by the inter- national diffusion of the so-called ‘‘Spice’’, i.e. herbal mixtures commercialized as ‘‘incenses’’ or ‘‘house scents’’. These apparently innocent products are known to contain different synthetic analogues of cannabinoids, which in many countries are not yet classified as illicit or controlled substances. Several cases of acute intoxication related to smoking ‘‘Spice’’ products have been reported. 5–7 In its most recent annual report, the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) 1 Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Unit of Forensic Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy 2 National Early Warning System, Addiction Department, Verona, Italy 3 Department of Anti-Drug Policies, Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Italy Corresponding author: Franco Tagliaro, Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Unit of Forensic Medicine, University of Verona, Policlinico, 37134 Verona, Italy. Email: franco.tagliaro@univr.it Medicine, Science and the Law 2014, Vol 54(1) 22–27 ! The Author(s) 2013 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0025802413477396 msl.sagepub.com by guest on February 8, 2016 msl.sagepub.com Downloaded from