Determination of cocaine, its metabolites, pyrolysis products, and ethanol adducts in postmortem fluids and tissues using Zymark ® automated solid-phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

• Published in: Journal of chromatography. B, Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences, 2004-07, Vol.806 (2), p.141-150
• Main Authors: Lewis, Russell J, Johnson, R.D, Angier, M.K, Ritter, R.M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis; Analytical, structural and metabolic biochemistry; Automation; Biological and medical sciences; Cocaine; Cocaine - metabolism; Cocaine, pyrolysis products; Cocaine-ethanol adducts; Ethanol - metabolism; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry - methods; General pharmacology; Humans; Medical sciences; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Postmortem Changes; Reference Standards
• ISSN: 1570-0232; 1873-376X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jchromb.2004.03.045

Demonstrating the presence or absence of cocaine (COC) and COC-related molecules in postmortem fluids and/or tissues can have serious legal consequences and may help determine the cause of impairment and/or death. We have developed a simple method for the simultaneous determination of COC and the COC metabolites benzoylecgonine (BE), norbenzoylecgonine (NBE), ecgonine methyl ester (EME), ecgonine (E), and norcocaine (NCOC), as well as anhydroecgonine methyl ester (AEME) (a unique byproduct of COC smoking), cocaethylene (a molecule formed by the concurrent use of COC and ethanol) and their related metabolites, anhydroecgonine (AE), norcocaethylene (NCE), and ecgonine ethyl ester (EEE). This method incorporates a Zymark ® RapidTrace™ automated solid-phase extraction (SPE) system, gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and 2,2,3,3,3-pentafluoro-1-propanol (PFP)/pentafluoropropionic anhydride (PFPA) derivatives. The lower limits of detection ranged from 0.78 to 12.5 ng/mL and the linear dynamic range for most analytes was 0.78–3200 ng/mL. The extraction efficiencies were from 26 to 84% with the exception of anhydroecgonine and ecgonine, which were from 1 to 4%. We applied this method to five aviation fatalities. This method has proven to be simple, robust and accurate for the simultaneous determination of COC and 11 COC metabolites in postmortem fluids and tissues.