Development of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and other rapid screening methods for the analysis of 16 'legal high' cathinone derivatives.

The prevalence of so-called 'legal high' drugs in forensic science drug casework has increased markedly in recent years. This has given rise to both legal and analytical challenges in the identification of these substances. The requirement for validated, reliable and rapid testing methodologies for these compounds is obvious.

Chemical enhancement of footwear impressions in blood on fabric - part 2: peroxidase reagents.

This study investigates the optimisation of peroxidase based enhancement techniques for footwear impressions made in blood on various fabric surfaces. Four different haem reagents: leuco crystal violet (LCV), leuco malachite green (LMG), fluorescein and luminol were used to enhance the blood contaminated impressions. The enhancement techniques in this study were used successfully to enhance the impressions in blood on light coloured surfaces, however, only fluorescent and/or chemiluminescent techniques allowed visualisation on dark coloured fabrics, denim and leather.

Chemical enhancement of footwear impressions in blood on fabric - part 1: protein stains.

A range of protein stains were utilised for the enhancement of footwear impressions on a variety of fabric types of different colours with blood as a contaminant. A semi-automated stamping device was used to deliver test impressions at a set force to minimise the variability between impressions; multiple impressions were produced and enhanced by each reagent to determine the repeatability of the enhancement. Results indicated that while most protein stains used in this study successfully enhanced impressions in blood on light coloured fabrics, background staining caused interference on natural fabrics.

Synthesis, full chemical characterisation and development of validated methods for the quantification of (±)-4'-methylmethcathinone (mephedrone): a new "legal high".

The recent global increase in the abuse of 4'-methylmethcathinone and related compounds has developed a requirement for full chemical characterisation of these products. In this work we present full synthetic and chemical characterisation data and supplemental information for mephedrone synthesised as both the hydrobromide and hydrochloride salt. Additionally we report the first fully validated chromatographic methods for the detection and quantitative analysis of the substance both in its pure form and in the presence of a number of common adulterants used in illicit drug manufacture.

Chemical enhancement of footwear impressions in blood deposited on fabric--evaluating the use of alginate casting materials followed by chemical enhancement.

Most footwear marks made in blood on a surface such as fabric tend to be enhanced in situ rather than physically recovered using a lifting technique prior to enhancement. This work reports on the use of an alginate material to recover the impressed footwear marks made in blood and deposited on a range of fabric types and colours. The lifted marks were then enhanced using acid black 1 and leuco crystal violet with excellent results.

Effects of caffeine on exercise performance of physically fit Thoroughbreds.

Objective: To determine the effects of a dose of caffeine (2.5 mg/kg, IV) administered to physically fit Thoroughbreds during incremental exercise testing to fatigue on a treadmill.

Animals: 10 conditioned Thoroughbreds.

Insect repellent [correction of repellant] interactions: sunscreens enhance DEET (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide) absorption.

Toxicology studies are typically performed on single compounds, which we hypothesized would miss adverse synergies from chemical mixtures. This hypothesis was tested using an insect repellant and sunscreens because both groups include known permeation enhancers, with prior pediatric reports of toxicity from highly concentrated DEET (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide). Using real-time mass spectroscopy in a hairless mouse skin model, we confirmed substantial penetration of a 20% DEET standard.