Effects of long term storage on secondary metabolite profiles of cannabis resin.

The structural identification and the monitoring of the relative concentrations of a wide range of major (3) and minor secondary (16) metabolites used as marker substances for profiling of cannabis resin using GC-FID at the Swedish National Forensic Centre (NFC) has facilitated the mapping of their chemical and physical behaviors over a period of 48months whilst stored under different conditions (exposure to light, exposure to air, temperature). In all cases the behavior of this group of sesquiterpenes, sesquiterpenoids, cannabinoids and waxes could be directly related to their chemical lability/functionality. In particular, the identification of homologue triads for both Δ-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) together with a group of seemingly chemically inert substances (for example, cannabicyclol(CBL) and the waxes (n-alkanes)) has created new tools for the establishment of common origins between samples of cannabis resins aged under different conditions.

Quantification of synthetic cannabinoids in herbal smoking blends using NMR.

Herbal smoking blends containing synthetic cannabinoids have become popular alternatives to marijuana. These products were previously sold in pre-packaged foil bags, but nowadays seizures usually contain synthetic cannabinoid powders together with unprepared plant materials. A question often raised by the Swedish police is how much smoking blend can be prepared from certain amounts of banned substance, in order to establish the severity of the crime.