title: Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) in blood samples from "driving under the influence" cases as indicator for prolonged excessive alcohol consumption.
abstract: Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) is considered as specific biomarker of alcohol consumption. Due to accumulation after repeated drinking, PEth is suitable to monitor long-term drinking behavior. To examine the applicability of PEth in "driving under the influence of alcohol" cases, 142 blood samples with blood alcohol concentrations (BAC) ranging from 0.0-3.12‰ were analyzed for the presence of PEth homologues 16:0/18:1 (889 ± 878 ng/mL; range <LOQ to 5400 ng/mL) and 16:0/18:2 (355 ± 315 ng/mL; range <LOQ to 1440 ng/mL) by LC-MS/MS. With receiver operating characteristic analysis, PEth thresholds were evaluated to differentiate moderate and excessive alcohol consumption with acceptable sensitivity and specificity in accordance with the 1.6‰ BAC limit. With a threshold of 700 ng/mL for PEth 16:0/18:1, prolonged excessive alcohol consumption was detected in 65.9% of drunk drivers with a BAC ≥ 1.6‰ and in 31.6% of the samples with a BAC < 1.6‰. Similar results were obtained for PEth 16:0/18:2 with a threshold of 300 ng/mL. Both criteria, PEth 16:0/18:1 and PEth 16:0/18:2, were conform in the evaluation of drinking habits in 88.7% of blood samples. These results show the possibility to detect prolonged excessive alcohol consumption, even if the BAC is below the legal threshold of 1.6‰ for driving aptitude assessment. As a consequence, concentrations of PEth 16:0/18:1 ≥ 700 ng/mL and of PEth 16:0/18:2 ≥ 300 ng/mL may be considered as indicators for the necessity of driving aptitude assessment in addition to BAC.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology and Chemistry, University of Bern, Bühlstrasse 20, 3012, Bern, Switzerland. alexandra.schroeck@irm.unibe.ch.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schröck
authors.affiliation: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology and Chemistry, University of Bern, Bühlstrasse 20, 3012, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hernández Redondo
authors.affiliation: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology and Chemistry, University of Bern, Bühlstrasse 20, 3012, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Martin Fabritius
authors.affiliation: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology and Chemistry, University of Bern, Bühlstrasse 20, 3012, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: König
authors.affiliation: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology and Chemistry, University of Bern, Bühlstrasse 20, 3012, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Weinmann
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000097:blood*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D000066448:Driving Under the Influence; D005260:Female; D020404:Glycerophospholipids / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D057230:Limit of Detection; D008297:Male; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D008875:Middle Aged; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection / Q000379:methods; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D020404:Glycerophospholipids; C051521:phosphatidylethanol
keywords: Alcohol biomarker; Driving under the influence (DUI); LC-MS/MS; Phosphatidylethanol