Untargeted Metabolomics in Forensic Toxicology: A New Approach for the Detection of Fentanyl Intake in Urine Samples.

ABSTRACT: The misuse of fentanyl, and novel synthetic opioids (NSO) in general, has become a public health emergency, especially in the United States. The detection of NSO is often challenged by the limited diagnostic time frame allowed by urine sampling and the wide range of chemically modified analogues, continuously introduced to the recreational drug market. In this study, an untargeted metabolomics approach was developed to obtain a comprehensive "fingerprint" of any anomalous and specific metabolic pattern potentially related to fentanyl exposure. In recent years, in vitro models of drug metabolism have emerged as important tools to overcome the limited access to positive urine samples and uncertainties related to the substances actually taken, the possible combined drug intake, and the ingest

SUBMITTER: Amante E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8398448 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature