title: Vitreous humor analysis for the detection of xenobiotics in forensic toxicology: a review.
abstract: Vitreous humor (VH) is a gelatinous substance contained in the posterior chamber of the eye, playing a mechanical role in the eyeball. It has been the subject of numerous studies in various forensic applications, primarily for the assessment of postmortem interval and for postmortem chemical analysis. Since most of the xenobiotics present in the bloodstream are detected in VH after crossing the selective blood-retinal barrier, VH is an alternative matrix useful for forensic toxicology. VH analysis offers particular advantages over other biological matrices: it is less prone to postmortem redistribution, is easy to collect, has relatively few interfering compounds for the analytical process, and shows sample stability over time after death. The present study is an overview of VH physiology, drug transport and elimination. Collection, storage, analytical techniques and interpretation of results from qualitative and quantitative points of view are dealt with. The distribution of xenobiotics in VH samples is thus discussed and illustrated by a table reporting the concentrations of 106 drugs from more than 300 case reports. For this purpose, a survey was conducted of publications found in the MEDLINE database from 1969 through April 30, 2015.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire LAT LUMTOX, 71 Avenue Rockefeller, 69003 Lyon, France.|Institut de Médecine Légale, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Faculté de Médecine Lyon Est, 8 Avenue Rockefeller, 69373 Lyon Cedex 08, France.
authors.forename: Fabien
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bévalot
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Toxicologie, ISPB-Faculté de Pharmacie, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 8 Avenue Rockefeller, 69373 Lyon Cedex 08, France.
authors.forename: Nathalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cartiser
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire LAT LUMTOX, 71 Avenue Rockefeller, 69003 Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Charline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bottinelli
authors.affiliation: Département de Médecine Légale, Hôpital Edouard-Herriot, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Place D'Arsonval, 69437 Lyon Cedex 03, France.|CREATIS CNRS UMR 5220, INSERM U1044, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, INSA Lyon, 7 Avenue Jean Capelle, 69621 Villeurbanne Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fanton
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Toxicologie, ISPB-Faculté de Pharmacie, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 8 Avenue Rockefeller, 69373 Lyon Cedex 08, France.|Laboratoire de Pharmacologie-Toxicologie, Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud, Hospices Civils de Lyon, 165 Chemin Grand Revoyet, 69495 Pierre Bénite Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Jérôme
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guitton
keywords: Alternative matrices; Blood-retinal barrier; Postmortem redistribution; Vitreous humor; Xenobiotics