Urine tested positive for ethyl glucuronide and ethyl sulfate after the consumption of yeast and sugar.
BACKGROUND
To an increasing degree, EtG and EtS are routinely used for the proof of abstinence for purposes of traffic, occupational, addiction and social medicine. This routine use demands further investigations on the sensitivity and specificity of these analytes and the examination of possible genesis of positive EtG and EtS concentrations even without the consumption of ethanol. In vivo fermentation with consecutive formation of EtG and EtS was addressed by experiments with yeast products.


METHODS
Two experiments with baker's yeast and brewer's yeast tablets were performed. The ethanol concentrations in urine of the 2 and 4 volunteers, respectively, were detected by HS-GC-FID, EtG and EtS analysis was performed by LC-ESI-MS/MS, and the creatinine concentration was determined using a method based on the Jaffé reaction.


CONCLUSIONS
After the consumption of baker's yeast the maximum concentrations of EtG and EtS normalised to creatinine were found to be 0.67 and 1.41mg/L, respectively, and therefore clearly above the commonly applied cut-off value for the proof of abstinence of 0.1mg/L. In contrast, in this study the, uptake of yeast tablets did not result in a detection of EtG and EtS in urine.
Thierauf
Annette
A
Institute of Forensic Medicine, Freiburg University Medical Centre, Albertstrasse 9, 79104 Freiburg, Germany. annette.thierauf@uniklinik-freiburg.de
Wohlfarth
Ariane
A
Auwärter
Volker
V
Perdekamp
Markus Grosse
MG
Wurst
Friedrich Martin
FM
Weinmann
Wolfgang
W
D000328:Adult; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D003404:Creatinine / Q000652:urine; D019422:Dietary Sucrose / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005260:Female; D005965:Glucuronates / Q000652:urine*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013463:Sulfuric Acid Esters / Q000652:urine*; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry; D015002:Yeast, Dried / Q000008:administration & dosage*
D019422:Dietary Sucrose; D005965:Glucuronates; D013463:Sulfuric Acid Esters; C093924:ethyl glucuronide; D003404:Creatinine; C011612:diethyl sulfate