Detection of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol in exhaled breath collected from cannabis users.
Exhaled breath has recently been proposed as a new possible matrix for drugs of abuse testing. A key drug is cannabis, and the present study was aimed at investigating the possibility of detecting tetrahydrocannabinol and tetrahydrocannabinol carboxylic acid in exhaled breath after cannabis smoking. Exhaled breath was sampled from 10 regular cannabis users and 8 controls by directing the exhaled breath by suction through an Empore C(18) disk. The disk was extracted with hexane/ethyl acetate, and the resulting extract was evaporated to dryness and redissolved in 100 μL hexane/ethyl acetate. A 3-μL aliquot was injected onto the LC-MS-MS system and analyzed using positive electrospray ionization and selected reaction monitoring. In samples collected 1-12 h after cannabis smoking, tetrahydrocannabinol was detected in all 10 subjects. The rate of excretion was between 9.0 and 77.3 pg/min. Identification of tetrahydrocannabinol was based on correct retention time relative to tetrahydrocannabinol-d(3) and correct product ion ratio. In three samples, peaks were observed for tetrahydrocannabinol carboxylic acid, but these did not fulfill identification criteria. Neither tetrahydrocannabinol or tetrahydrocannabinol carboxylic acid was detected in the controls. These results confirm older reports that tetrahydrocannabinol is present in exhaled breath following cannabis smoking and extend the detection time from minutes to hours. The results further support the idea that exhaled breath is a promising matrix for drugs-of-abuse testing.
Determination of methadone in exhaled breath condensate by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.
Within the field of toxicology exhaled breath is used as specimen only for determination of alcohol. However, it was recently discovered that when using sensitive liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) technique, amphetamine, methamphetamine, and methadone are detectable in exhaled breath following intake by drug addicts. We therefore undertook to develop a method for determination of methadone in exhaled breath condensate from patients undergoing methadonemaintenance treatment. Exhaled breath condensate was collected from 14 patients after intake of the daily methadone dose. The exhaled breath condensate was collected for 10 min using an Ecoscreen instrument. After extraction of any trapped methadone from the condensate by solid-phase extraction, the final extract was analyzed by a combined LC-MS-MS method. Recovery of methadone from breath condensate in the solid-phase extraction was 104%, no significant matrix effects were observed, and the quantification using methadone-d(3) as internal standard was accurate (10% bias) and precise (coefficient of variation 6.2%). Methadone was indisputably identified by means of the MS technique in exhaled breath condensate from all 14 patients. Identification was based on monitoring two product ions in selected reaction monitoring mode with correct relative ratio (± 20%) and correct retention time. Excretion rates ranged from 23.6 to 275 pg/min. No methadone was detected in five control subjects (< 2 pg/min). This finding confirms that methadone is present in exhaled breath from patients in methadone treatment. Collection of exhaled breath specimen is likely to be complementary to other matrices presently in use in testing for drugs-of-abuse.
Silica in Soils1
Publisher Summary Silica in free and combined forms is a dominant component of the solid material of many soils, and dissolved silica is commonly a major solute of soil solutions. Breakdown of primary silicates, translocation of silica in solution, and deposition of secondary silica-containing substances are involved in the development of soils. Ions essential for the growth of plants are released to the soil solution as silicates weather, and these ions may be held against leaching at exchange sites on other silicates. Silica is absorbed in appreciable quantities by some plants and is returned to the surface of the soil as the plants decay. The nature and transformations of silica and silicates in soil are, thus, fundamental to an understanding of many aspects of soil and plant sciences.