title: Application of solid-phase microextraction to the profiling of an illicit drug: manufacturing impurities in illicit 4-methoxyamphetamine.
abstract: This article describes the application of solid-phase microextraction (SPME) to the recovery of manufacturing by-products and impurities from an illicit drug seizure. The preparation chosen for examination using this technique contained 4-methoxyamphetamine, an hallucinogenic amphetamine that has been encountered frequently in South Australia. Compounds found in the PMA preparation included 4-methoxyphenol, 4-methoxybenzaldehyde, 4-methoxyphenyl-2-propanone, 4-methoxyphenyl-2-propanol, 4-methoxyphenyl-propene, and (tentatively) 4-methyl-5-(4'-methoxyphenyl) pyrimidine. The presence of these compounds suggests that the active drug was prepared from 4-methoxybenzaldehyde via 4-methoxyphenyl-2-propanone using a Leuckardt reductive amination. In this instance, SPME was found to be a simple, rapid, and non-destructive recovery technique that gave results complementary to those provided by conventional liquid-liquid extraction. There is an indication that SPME might find application in profiling of illicit drugs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Technology, University of South Australia, Adelaide.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Coumbaros
authors.forename: K P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Kirkbride
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Klass
mesh_terms: D000662:Amphetamines / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D062787:Drug Overdose / Q000175:diagnosis; D005554:Forensic Medicine / Q000379:methods; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry / Q000379:methods*; D006213:Hallucinogens / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D000662:Amphetamines; D006213:Hallucinogens; C100230:4-methoxyamphetamine