Problems of Forensic Sciences 2014 Vol. 100 (C) 359-385
NEW PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCES – A CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGE FOR FORENSIC TOXICOLOGISTS
Dariusz ZUBA
Institute of Forensic Research, Kraków, Poland
Streszczenie
The sale of new psychoactive substances (NPS) via the Internet and in brick and mortar shops has been a new direction of development for the drug market. These drugs are usually simple analogues of controlled substances or compounds acting on the same receptors in the human body. Customers are often not informed about the real composition of the product, contraindications or side-effects of consumption. Legislators in many countries, including Poland, have tried different approaches to get the products withdrawn from the market (legal trade), but it is a difficult problem. Usually, when one substance is banned, an uncontrolled analogue is introduced into the market. Currently, analysis of the composition of preparations seized by the police and health services requires the application of advanced analytical methods. Gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and a liquid chromatograph coupled to a quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometer (LC-Q-TOF-MS) have been applied in the Section for Drugs and Alcohol Analyses of the Institute of Forensic Research for this purpose. In the course of the last 6 years, more than 10,000 different products in the form of powders, tablets, capsules, paper blotters and plant material have been investigated. The results of studies on the content of preparations analysed in the discussed time period were analysed. The data on preparation content were divided into five time intervals according to successive amendments of the antidrug legislation in force (Act of 29 July 2005 on counteracting drug addiction, ACDA). It was found that the composition of the preparations changed with time. Initially piperazines were popular, but their popularity has decreased year by year. Cathinones – introduced into the drugs market in 2009 – quickly gained ground. A representative of this group, mephedrone, was very popular with many users even after it was banned. In the last 3 years, hallucinogens from the 2C series and their derivatives, the so-called the NBOMe compounds, have become very popular. New synthetic cannabinoids, which are substances acting on the same receptors in the body as delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC), an active component of cannabis plants, have also been characterised by great diversity. It was observed that newly marketed substances usually have a higher affinity for the cannabinoid receptor CB1 than delta-9-THC. The very large number of new psychoactive substances being produced and released into the market has been a great challenge for analysts, medical doctors, sociologists, and drug policy makers. The study indicates that a new systemic approach to the control of psychotropic substances and narcotic drugs is desirable, because successive amendments of annexes to the ACDA are ineffective.
Słowa kluczowe
“Legal highs”; Cathinones; Cannabinoids; Phenethylamines; Tryptamines; Legislation.