Determination of Selected Cathinones in Blood by Solid-Phase Extraction and GC-MS.

The emergence of potentially dangerous new psychoactive substances (NPS) is challenging for forensic laboratories, as well as the ability to develop and validate methods for a rapid and unambiguous monitoring of these compounds. Thereupon, the aim of this work was to establish a methodology for the identification and quantification of four synthetic cathinones already seized in Portugal [4-chloroethcathinone (4-CEC), α-pyrrolidinovalerophenone (α-PVP), 4-chloro-pyrrolidinovalerophenone (4-Cl-PVP) and methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV)] in whole blood samples, using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The analytes were extracted from blood by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and derivatized with N-methyl-N-(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (MSTFA) with 5% trimethylchlorosilane (TMCS).