title: Tramadol--a true natural product?
abstract: We have independently investigated the source of tramadol, a synthetic analgesic largely used for treating moderate to severe pain in humans, recently found in the roots of the Cameroonian medicinal plant, Nauclea latifolia. We found tramadol and its three major mammalian metabolites (O-desmethyltramadol, N-desmethyltramadol, and 4-hydroxycyclohexyltramadol) in the roots of N. latifolia and five other plant species, and also in soil and local water bodies only in the Far North region of Cameroon. The off-label administration of tramadol to cattle in this region leads to cross-contamination of the soil and water through feces and urine containing parent tramadol as well as tramadol metabolites produced in the animals. These compounds can then be absorbed by the plant roots and also leached into the local water supplies. The presence of tramadol in roots is, thus, due to an anthropogenic contamination with the synthetic compound.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Environmental Research (INFU), Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, TU Dortmund, Otto-Hahn-Strasse 6, 44221 Dortmund (Germany).
authors.forename: Souvik
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kusari
authors.forename: Simplice Joel N
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Tatsimo
authors.forename: Sebastian
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zühlke
authors.forename: Ferdinand M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Talontsi
authors.forename: Simeon Fogue
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Kouam
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spiteller
mesh_terms: D001688:Biological Products / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002163:Cameroon; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000737:chemistry*; D012015:Reference Standards; D019666:Rubiaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry; D014147:Tramadol / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification*
chemical_list: D001688:Biological Products; D014147:Tramadol
keywords: analytical methods; anthropogenic contamination; high-resolution mass spectrometry; phytochemistry; tramadol