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Cavalcante JA, Souza JC, Rohwedder JJR, Maldaner AO, Pasquini C, Hespanhol MC. A compact Fourier-transform near-infrared spectrophotometer and chemometrics for characterizing a comprehensive set of seized ecstasy samples. Spectrochim Acta A Mol Biomol Spectrosc 2024; 314:124163. [PMID: 38513320 DOI: 10.1016/j.saa.2024.124163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 03/14/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024]
Abstract
A comprehensive data set of ecstasy samples containing MDMA (N-methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine) and MDA (3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine) seized by the Brazilian Federal Police was characterized using spectral data obtained by a compact, low-cost, near-infrared Fourier-transform based spectrophotometer. Qualitative and quantitative characterization was accomplished using soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA), linear discriminant analysis (LDA) classification, discriminating partial least square (PLS-DA), and regression models based on partial least square (PLS). By applying chemometric analysis, a protocol can be proposed for the in-field screening of seized ecstasy samples. The validation led to an efficiency superior to 96 % for ecstasy classification and estimating total actives, MDMA, and MDA content in the samples with a root mean square error of validation of 4.4, 4.2, and 2.7 % (m/m), respectively. The feasibility and drawbacks of the NIR technology applied to ecstasy characterization and the compromise between false positives and false negatives rate achieved by the classification models are discussed and a new approach to improve the classification robustness was proposed considering the forensic context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A Cavalcante
- Chemistry Institute, State University of Campinas - UNICAMP, Rua Monteiro Lobato, 290, Campinas, SP, 13083-862, Brazil
| | - Jamille C Souza
- Group of Analysis and Education for Sustainability (GAES), Chemistry Department, Federal University of Viçosa (UFV), Viçosa, MG, 36570-900, Brazil
| | - Jarbas J R Rohwedder
- Chemistry Institute, State University of Campinas - UNICAMP, Rua Monteiro Lobato, 290, Campinas, SP, 13083-862, Brazil
| | - Adriano O Maldaner
- National Institute of Criminalistics, Federal Police, SAIS Quadra 07 Lote 23, 70610-200 Brasília, DF, Brazil
| | - Celio Pasquini
- Chemistry Institute, State University of Campinas - UNICAMP, Rua Monteiro Lobato, 290, Campinas, SP, 13083-862, Brazil
| | - Maria C Hespanhol
- Group of Analysis and Education for Sustainability (GAES), Chemistry Department, Federal University of Viçosa (UFV), Viçosa, MG, 36570-900, Brazil.
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2
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Bade R, van Herwerden D, Rousis N, Adhikari S, Allen D, Baduel C, Bijlsma L, Boogaerts T, Burgard D, Chappell A, Driver EM, Sodre FF, Fatta-Kassinos D, Gracia-Lor E, Gracia-Marín E, Halden RU, Heath E, Jaunay E, Krotulski A, Lai FY, Löve ASC, O'Brien JW, Oh JE, Pasin D, Castro MP, Psichoudaki M, Salgueiro-Gonzalez N, Gomes CS, Subedi B, Thomas KV, Thomaidis N, Wang D, Yargeau V, Samanipour S, Mueller J. Workflow to facilitate the detection of new psychoactive substances and drugs of abuse in influent urban wastewater. J Hazard Mater 2024; 469:133955. [PMID: 38457976 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.133955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2023] [Revised: 02/22/2024] [Accepted: 03/03/2024] [Indexed: 03/10/2024]
Abstract
The complexity around the dynamic markets for new psychoactive substances (NPS) forces researchers to develop and apply innovative analytical strategies to detect and identify them in influent urban wastewater. In this work a comprehensive suspect screening workflow following liquid chromatography - high resolution mass spectrometry analysis was established utilising the open-source InSpectra data processing platform and the HighResNPS library. In total, 278 urban influent wastewater samples from 47 sites in 16 countries were collected to investigate the presence of NPS and other drugs of abuse. A total of 50 compounds were detected in samples from at least one site. Most compounds found were prescription drugs such as gabapentin (detection frequency 79%), codeine (40%) and pregabalin (15%). However, cocaine was the most found illicit drug (83%), in all countries where samples were collected apart from the Republic of Korea and China. Eight NPS were also identified with this protocol: 3-methylmethcathinone 11%), eutylone (6%), etizolam (2%), 3-chloromethcathinone (4%), mitragynine (6%), phenibut (2%), 25I-NBOH (2%) and trimethoxyamphetamine (2%). The latter three have not previously been reported in municipal wastewater samples. The workflow employed allowed the prioritisation of features to be further investigated, reducing processing time and gaining in confidence in their identification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Bade
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia.
| | - Denice van Herwerden
- Van't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences (HIMS), University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Nikolaos Rousis
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
| | - Sangeet Adhikari
- School of Sustainable Engineering and Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, United States; Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, United States
| | - Darren Allen
- Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Herston, QLD 4029, Australia
| | - Christine Baduel
- Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IRD, Grenoble INP, Institute of Environmental Geosciences (IGE), Grenoble, France
| | - Lubertus Bijlsma
- Environmental and Public Health Analytical Chemistry, Research Institute for Pesticides and Water, University Jaume I, Avda, Sos Baynat s/n, E-12071 Castellón, Spain
| | - Tim Boogaerts
- Toxicological Centre, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Dan Burgard
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA 98416, United States
| | - Andrew Chappell
- Institute of Environmental Science and Research Limited (ESR), Christchurch Science Centre, 27 Creyke Road, Ilam, Christchurch 8041, New Zealand
| | - Erin M Driver
- Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, United States
| | | | - Despo Fatta-Kassinos
- Nireas-International Water Research Centre and Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 20537, 1678 Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Emma Gracia-Lor
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Complutense University of Madrid, Avenida Complutense s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain
| | - Elisa Gracia-Marín
- Environmental and Public Health Analytical Chemistry, Research Institute for Pesticides and Water, University Jaume I, Avda, Sos Baynat s/n, E-12071 Castellón, Spain
| | - Rolf U Halden
- School of Sustainable Engineering and Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, United States; Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, United States; OneWaterOneHealth, Arizona State University Foundation, 1001 S. McAllister Avenue, Tempe, AZ 85287-8101, United States
| | - Ester Heath
- Jožef Stefan Institute and International Postgraduate School Jožef Stefan, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Emma Jaunay
- Health and Biomedical Innovation, UniSA: Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5001, South Australia, Australia
| | - Alex Krotulski
- Center for Forensic Science Research and Education, Fredric Rieders Family Foundation, Willow Grove, PA 19090, United States
| | - Foon Yin Lai
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), SE-75007 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Arndís Sue Ching Löve
- University of Iceland, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Hofsvallagata 53, 107 Reykjavik, Iceland; University of Iceland, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hofsvallagata 53, 107 Reykjavik, Iceland
| | - Jake W O'Brien
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia; Van't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences (HIMS), University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Jeong-Eun Oh
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pusan National University, Jangjeon-dong, Geumjeong-gu, Busan 46241, Republic of Korea
| | - Daniel Pasin
- Forensic Laboratory Division, San Francisco Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, 1 Newhall St, San Francisco, CA 94124, United States
| | | | - Magda Psichoudaki
- Nireas-International Water Research Centre and Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 20537, 1678 Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Noelia Salgueiro-Gonzalez
- Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | | | - Bikram Subedi
- Department of Chemistry, Murray State University, Murray, KY 42071-3300, United States
| | - Kevin V Thomas
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
| | - Nikolaos Thomaidis
- Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis Zografou, 15771 Athens, Greece
| | - Degao Wang
- College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, No. 1 Linghai Road, Dalian 116026, PR China
| | - Viviane Yargeau
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Saer Samanipour
- Van't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences (HIMS), University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands; UvA Data Science Center, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Jochen Mueller
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
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Garzón Ruiz JP, Cortés Muñoz F, Ferrer Buenaño MA, García Hernández AL, Lombana Cortés JJ, Luis Quimbay Mondragón J, Gil Cabezas MA, Parada Fresneda AP, Buitrago Arcila JS, Agudelo Cruz LF, Fonseca Granados LD, Ruiz Barrera JT. Relationship between psychoactive substance, alcohol and cigarette use in nursing students. A cross-sectional study. Rev Colomb Psiquiatr (Engl Ed) 2024:S2530-3120(24)00016-X. [PMID: 38670822 DOI: 10.1016/j.rcpeng.2021.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2021] [Accepted: 11/07/2021] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The increase in the use of psychoactive substances, alcohol and cigarettes in young people has become a public health problem. The identification of factors that increase or reduce the risk of exposure to these substances and the possible relationship between them is essential for planning strategies with a risk approach; hence the reason for this study. The objective was to establish the profile of use of psychoactive substances, alcohol and cigarettes and the factors associated with such use in nursing students of a higher education institution. METHODS Quantitative, observational, analytical cross-sectional study. RESULTS We included 310 students from 1 st to 9th semester of a Nursing programme from a private higher education institution in Bogotá. The prevalence of psychoactive substance use in the last year was 2.96% (95%CI, 1.36-5.54), with marijuana being the substance most used (55.55%). The prevalence of alcohol and cigarette use during the last 12 months was estimated at 86.64% (95%CI, 83.24-91.0) and 12.16% (95%CI, 8.43-15.88) respectively. A statistically significant association was found between the use of these substances: alcohol use was associated with cigarette use (OR = 3.22; P = 0.006) and smoking was associated with psychoactive substance use (OR = 15.4; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Alcohol use increases the likelihood of smoking cigarettes, and this in turn increases the likelihood of psychoactive substance use, in this university population.
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Puljević C, Tscharke B, Wessel EL, Francis C, Verhagen R, O'Brien JW, Bade R, Nadarajan D, Measham F, Stowe MJ, Piatkowski T, Ferris J, Page R, Hiley S, Eassey C, McKinnon G, Sinclair G, Blatchford E, Engel L, Norvill A, Barratt MJ. Characterising differences between self-reported and wastewater-identified drug use at two consecutive years of an Australian music festival. Sci Total Environ 2024; 921:170934. [PMID: 38360330 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In the context of drug prohibition, potential adulteration and variable purity pose additional health risks for people who use drugs, with these risks often compounded by the outdoor music festival environment. Ahead of the imminent implementation of drug checking services in Queensland, Australia, this study aims to characterise this problem using triangulated survey and wastewater data to understand self-reported and detected drug use among attendees of a multi-day Queensland-based music festival in 2021 and 2022. METHODS We administered an in-situ survey focusing on drug use at the festival to two convenience samples of 136 and 140 festival attendees in 2021 and 2022 respectively. We compared survey findings to wastewater collected concurrently from the festival's site-specific wastewater treatment plant, which was analysed using Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry. RESULTS Most survey respondents (82 % in 2021, 92 % in 2022) reported using or intending to use an illicit drug at the festival. Some respondents reported potentially risky drug use practices such as using drugs found on the ground (2 % in 2021, 4 % in 2022). Substances detected in wastewater but not surveys include MDEA, mephedrone, methylone, 3-MMC, alpha-D2PV, etizolam, eutylone, and N,N-dimethylpentylone. CONCLUSION Many substances detected in wastewater but not self-reported in surveys likely represent substitutions or adulterants. These findings highlight the benefits of drug checking services to prevent harms from adulterants and provide education on safer drug use practices. These findings also provide useful information on socio-demographic characteristics and drug use patterns of potential users of Queensland's future drug checking service.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheneal Puljević
- The Loop Australia, Australia; School of Public Health, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
| | - Benjamin Tscharke
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Ellen Leslie Wessel
- The Loop Australia, Australia; School of Public Health, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | | | - Rory Verhagen
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Jake W O'Brien
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Richard Bade
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Dhayaalini Nadarajan
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Fiona Measham
- The Loop Australia, Australia; Department of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom; The Loop Drug Checking Service, United Kingdom
| | - M J Stowe
- The Loop Australia, Australia; The Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Timothy Piatkowski
- The Loop Australia, Australia; School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia
| | - Jason Ferris
- The Loop Australia, Australia; Centre for Health Services Research, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Robert Page
- The Loop Australia, Australia; National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales Sydney, Sydney, Australia; Alcohol & Drug Service, St Vincent's Hospital Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | | | - Christopher Eassey
- The Loop Australia, Australia; National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Monica J Barratt
- The Loop Australia, Australia; National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales Sydney, Sydney, Australia; Social Equity Research Centre and Digital Ethnography Research Centre, RMIT University, Melbourne, Vic, Australia
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5
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Ceolotto N, Jagadeesan K, Xu L, Standerwick R, Robertson M, Barden R, Barnett J, Kasprzyk-Hordern B. Assessment of restriction measures implemented during COVID pandemics on community lifestyle choices via wastewater-based epidemiology. J Hazard Mater 2024; 471:134264. [PMID: 38640675 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.134264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/21/2024]
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 pandemic affected lifestyle habits, and the mental health and wellbeing of people around the world. In this manuscript, two towns (Paulton and Radstock) and two cities (Bath and Bristol) in Southwest England (> 1 million people) were monitored for two years using Wastewater-Based Epidemiology to assess impacts of COVID (including management measures such as lockdowns and movement restrictions) on community lifestyle choices: illicit drugs, legal stimulants, abused pharmaceuticals and pain pharma usage. Results were triangulated with key dates captured during the pandemic (national lockdowns, restrictions and social distancing measures, etc.). This highlighted a reduction in cocaine intake (as benzoylecgonine) (community average: -36 %) during the first lockdown and an increase in illicit drugs usage after the 3rd national lockdown (community averages for amphetamine: +8 %, cocaine/benzoylecgonine: +39 %, ketamine:+70 %) when restrictions were removed, and social interaction and recreational activities increased. There was a reduction in the intake of caffeine (as 1,7-dimethylxanthine) (community average:-39 %) after 3rd national lockdown coinciding with pubs reopening while nicotine intake (via cotinine) remained stable indicating lack of impact of COVID on smoking habits. Pain pharma often used in pain management resulting from injuries linked with sport activities (naproxen and diclofenac) showed decrease in usage due to lockdown restrictions in physical exercise and access to gyms/sport facilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicola Ceolotto
- Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK; Institute for Sustainability, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK
| | | | - Like Xu
- Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK
| | - Richard Standerwick
- Wessex Water, Bath BA2 7WW, UK; Environment Agency, Horizon House, Deanery Road, Bristol, UK
| | | | | | - Julie Barnett
- Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK
| | - Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern
- Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK; Institute for Sustainability, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UK.
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6
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Bade R, Nadarajan D, Driver EM, Halden RU, Gerber C, Krotulski A, Hall W, Mueller JF. Wastewater-based monitoring of the nitazene analogues: First detection of protonitazene in wastewater. Sci Total Environ 2024; 920:170781. [PMID: 38360322 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
Synthetic opioids, particularly the nitazene analogues class, have become a public health concern due to their high potency. Wastewater-based epidemiology can detect community use of these compounds. The objective of this work was to detect nitazene analogues in wastewater from samples collected from eight sites in the United States. Influent wastewater samples were collected from eight sites in seven states (Arizona, Oregon, New Mexico, Illinois, New Jersey, Washington and Georgia) in the United States. Samples were collected from each site on three days between 27 December 2022 and 4 January 2023, acidified on collection, stored frozen and shipped to Arizona State University (Tempe, AZ) for sample processing. Samples were then shipped to The University of Queensland (Brisbane, Australia) for sample analysis. Protonitazene was found in samples collected from two sites in Washington and Illinois. The concentration was estimated up to 0.5 ng/L, with estimated excreted mass loads up to 0.3 mg/day/1000 people. This work has shown that it is possible to detect nitazene analogues in wastewater using a combination of sample pre-concentration and sensitive instrumentation, thereby further expanding the utility of wastewater-based epidemiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Bade
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia.
| | - Dhayaalini Nadarajan
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
| | - Erin M Driver
- Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
| | - Rolf U Halden
- Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, USA; School of Sustainable Engineering and Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA; OneWaterOneHealth, Arizona State University Foundation, 1001 S. McAllister Avenue, Tempe, AZ 85287-8101, USA
| | - Cobus Gerber
- Health and Biomedical Innovation, UniSA: Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5001, South Australia, Australia
| | - Alex Krotulski
- Center for Forensic Science Research and Education, Fredric Rieders Family Foundation, Willow Grove, PA 19090, United States
| | - Wayne Hall
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia; National Centre for Youth Substance Use Research, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Jochen F Mueller
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
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7
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Jaunay EL, Bade R, Paxton KR, Nadarajan D, Barry DC, Zhai Y, Tscharke BJ, O'Brien JW, Mueller J, White JM, Simpson BS, Gerber C. Monitoring the use of novel psychoactive substances in Australia by wastewater-based epidemiology. Sci Total Environ 2024; 919:170473. [PMID: 38286292 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024]
Abstract
Users of novel psychoactive substances (NPS) are at risk, due to limited information about the toxicity and unpredictable effects of these compounds. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has been used as a tool to provide insight into NPS use at the population level. To understand the preferences and trends of NPS use in Australia, this study involved liquid chromatography mass spectrometry analysis of wastewater collected from Australian states and territories from February 2022 to February 2023. In total, 59 different NPS were included across two complementary analytical methods and covered up to 57 wastewater catchments over the study. The NPS detected in wastewater were 25-B-NBOMe, buphedrone, 1-benzylpiperazine (BZP), 3-chloromethcathinone, N,N-dimethylpentylone (N,N-DMP), N-ethylheptedrone, N-ethylpentylone, eutylone, 4F-phenibut, 2-fluoro deschloroketamine, hydroxetamine, mephedrone, methoxetamine, methylone, mitragynine, pentylone, phenibut, para-methoxyamphetamine (PMA), alpha-pyrrolidinovalerophenone (α-PVP) and valeryl fentanyl. The detection frequency for these NPS ranged from 3 % to 100 % of the sites analysed. A noticeable decreasing trend in eutylone detection frequency and mass loads was observed whilst simultaneously N,N-DMP and pentylone increased over the study period. The emergence of some NPS in wastewater pre-dates other sources of monitoring and provides further evidence that WBE can be used as an additional early warning system for alerting potential NPS use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma L Jaunay
- Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5000, South Australia, Australia
| | - Richard Bade
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Kara R Paxton
- Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5000, South Australia, Australia
| | - Dhayaalini Nadarajan
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Daniel C Barry
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Yuze Zhai
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Benjamin J Tscharke
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Jake W O'Brien
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Jochen Mueller
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Jason M White
- Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5000, South Australia, Australia
| | - Bradley S Simpson
- Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5000, South Australia, Australia
| | - Cobus Gerber
- Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5000, South Australia, Australia.
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8
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Yuan S, Xiang Y, Chen L, Xiang P, Li Y. Magnetic solid-phase extraction based on polydopamine-coated magnetic nanoparticles for rapid and sensitive analysis of eleven illicit drugs and metabolites in wastewater with the aid of UHPLC-MS/MS. J Chromatogr A 2024; 1718:464703. [PMID: 38340459 DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2024.464703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
The quantification of illicit drugs in wastewater has become a valuable tool for monitoring illicit drug abuse. The commonly utilized methods for detecting drugs in wastewater require a substantial sample volume, extended pretreatment durations, and intricate procedures. This study first employed polydopamine-coated magnetic nanocomposites as adsorbents for magnetic solid-phase extraction, combined with UPLC-MS/MS, to simultaneously determine the concentrations of eleven common illicit drugs in wastewater. The synthesis process for Fe3O4@PDA is straightforward and high-yield. Benefiting from the strong magnetic response, good dispersibility, and abundant binding sites of the prepared nanocomposites, the extraction of illicit drugs from wastewater could be achieved in just 15 min. The method exhibited satisfactory limits of quantitation (ranging from 5 to 10 ng/L), commendable accuracy (ranging from 90.59 % to 106.80 %), good precision (with RSDs below 10 %), and less sample consumption (only 1 mL). The efficacy of this method was successfully validated through its application to actual wastewater samples collected from ten wastewater treatment plants. The results indicated that morphine, codeine, methamphetamine, and ketamine were the predominant illicit drugs present in the samples. The method developed is able to meet the needs of common illicit drug monitoring and high-throughput analysis requirements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai Yuan
- Academy of Forensic Science, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Forensic Medicine, Shanghai Forensic Service Platform, Key Laboratory of Forensic Science, Ministry of Justice, Shanghai 200063, China
| | - Yangjiayi Xiang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Lizhu Chen
- Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai 201203, China; Department of Pharmacy, Tongji Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200065, China
| | - Ping Xiang
- Academy of Forensic Science, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Forensic Medicine, Shanghai Forensic Service Platform, Key Laboratory of Forensic Science, Ministry of Justice, Shanghai 200063, China.
| | - Yan Li
- Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis, School of Pharmacy, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China.
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9
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Bellot M, Soria F, López-Arnau R, Gómez-Canela C, Barata C. Daphnia magna an emerging environmental model of neuro and cardiotoxicity of illicit drugs. Environ Pollut 2024; 344:123355. [PMID: 38228265 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.123355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 12/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/13/2024] [Indexed: 01/18/2024]
Abstract
Cocaine, methamphetamine, ectasy (3,4-methylenedioxy amphetamine (MDMA)) and ketamine are among the most consumed drugs worldwide causing cognitive, oxidative stress and cardiovascular problems in humans. Residue levels of these drugs and their transformation products may still enter the aquatic environment, where concentrations up to hundreds of ng/L have been measured. In the present work we tested the hypothesis that psychotropic effects and the mode of action of these drugs in D. magna cognitive, oxidative stress and cardiovascular responses are equivalent to those reported in humans and other vertebrate models. Accordingly we expose D. magna juveniles to pharmacological and environmental relevant concentrations. The study was complemented with the measurement of the main neurotransmitters involved in the known mechanisms of action of these drugs in mammals and physiological relevant amino acids. Behavioural cognitive patters clearly differentiate the 3 psychostimulant drugs (methamphetamine, cocaine, MDMA) from the dissociative one ketamine. Psychostimulant drugs at pharmacological doses (10-200 μM), increased basal locomotion activities and responses to light, and decreased habituation to it. Ketamine only increased habituation to light. The four drugs enhanced the production of reactive oxygen species in a concentration related manner, and at moderate concentrations (10-60 μM) increased heartbeats, diminishing them at high doses (200 μM). In chronic exposures to environmental low concentrations (10-1000 ng/L) the four drugs did not affect any of the behavioural responses measured but methamphetamine and cocaine inhibited reproduction at 10 ng/L. Observed effects on neurotransmitters and related metabolites were in concern with reported responses in mammalian and other vertebrate models: cocaine and MDMA enhanced dopamine and serotonin levels, respectively, methamphetamine and MDMA decreased dopamine and octopamine, and all but MDMA decreased 3 MT levels. Drug effects on the concentration of up to 10 amino acids evidence disruptive effects on neurotransmitter synthesis, the urea cycle, lipid metabolism and cardiac function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Bellot
- Department of Analytical and Applied Chemistry, School of Engineering, Institut Químic de Sarrià-Universitat Ramon Llull, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Fernando Soria
- Department of Analytical and Applied Chemistry, School of Engineering, Institut Químic de Sarrià-Universitat Ramon Llull, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Raul López-Arnau
- Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutic Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Science, Institut de Biomedicina IBUB, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Cristian Gómez-Canela
- Department of Analytical and Applied Chemistry, School of Engineering, Institut Químic de Sarrià-Universitat Ramon Llull, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Carlos Barata
- Institute for Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA-CSIC), Jordi Girona 18, 08034 Barcelona, Spain.
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10
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Eassey C, Hughes CE, Wadds P, de Andrade D, Barratt MJ. A systematic review of interventions that impact alcohol and other drug-related harms in licensed entertainment settings and outdoor music festivals. Harm Reduct J 2024; 21:47. [PMID: 38383344 PMCID: PMC10882826 DOI: 10.1186/s12954-024-00949-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Harms associated with the use of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) in licensed entertainment settings (LES) and outdoor music festivals (OMF) are ongoing public health and criminal justice concerns. This systematic review provides a comprehensive, synthesized report on the evidence base of interventions that impact harm in these settings, and how they affect health, behavioral, and criminal justice outcomes. METHODS Nine databases were searched for experimental and observational studies published between 2010 and 2021. Studies were included if they were peer-reviewed, published in English, described interventions which could impact AOD-related harms in LES or OMF (and were delivered in these environments), and reported on health, criminal justice and/or behavioral outcomes. Methodological quality was assessed using the Effective Public Health Practice Project's Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies and the Critical Appraisal Skills Program for qualitative studies. A narrative synthesis was conducted to synthesize outcomes across studies. The review protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020140004). RESULTS Of the 48,303 studies screened, 100 met the inclusion criteria. 86 focused solely on reducing alcohol-related harm, 7 on reducing illicit drug-related harm, and 7 on both. Most (n = 88) focused on LES and evaluated changes in laws and regulations (n = 28) and/or multicomponent interventions/policies (n = 41). Multicomponent interventions showed the best results for both health (62% positive) and criminal justice (84% positive) outcomes, with 71% of studies being rated as strong quality. There was also good evidence to support the careful application of trading hour restrictions and limited but promising evidence to support medical services and drug checking. CONCLUSION The breadth, quality and volume of evidence regarding what works in reducing AOD-related harm in recreational settings have increased in the past decade, particularly regarding LES. Findings support onsite medical services (reducing ambulance transfer rates), multicomponent interventions targeting alcohol accessibility and availability (reducing assaults), and drug checking services, but suggest other interventions such as drug detection dogs may exacerbate harm. Further, higher quality research is required to address identified gaps in the evidence base, particularly on optimal interventions within OMF, around illicit drugs more broadly and in the Global South.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Eassey
- National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Caitlin E Hughes
- National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Australia
- Centre for Crime Policy and Research, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Phillip Wadds
- The School of Law, Society and Criminology, and Centre for Criminology, Law and Justice, Faculty of Law and Justice, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Dominique de Andrade
- Griffith Criminology Institute, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia
- School of Psychology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
- Centre for Drug Use, Addictive and Anti-Social Behaviour Research, School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
| | - Monica J Barratt
- National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
- Social Equity Research Centre and Digital Ethnography Research Centre, RMIT University, 124 La Trobe Street, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia.
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11
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Ning H, Fan Y, Chen H, Liu H, Huang Z, Ke X, Xu Y, She Y. Preparation of mixed-mode weak cation exchange magnetic solid-phase extraction sorbent and its application in the extraction of 21 illicit drugs from wastewater. J Hazard Mater 2024; 464:133007. [PMID: 37984142 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.133007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Revised: 11/08/2023] [Accepted: 11/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
The detection of illicit drugs in wastewater can effectively monitor and evaluate the trend of illicit drug abuse. A novel mixed-mode cation exchange magnetic sorbent Fe3O4 @poly(ST/DVB/MA-COOH) was prepared and firstly applied as magnetically dispersed solid phase extraction material to efficiently, rapidly, and selectively extract 21 illicit drugs from wastewater. The selectivity of the sorbent was mainly attributed to the electrostatic interaction. The effects of Fe3O4 @poly(ST/DVB/MA-COOH) preparation and extraction conditions on the adsorption performance were thoroughly discussed. Among the 21 illicit drugs, the absolute extraction recovery values for 19 illicit drugs were greater than 80 % and the entire adsorption process could be achieved in one minute. Subsequently, the Fe3O4 @poly(ST/DVB/MA-COOH) sorbent combined with UHPLC-MS/MS was used to establish a quantitative method for the effectively extracted 19 illicit drugs in wastewater. The method had a good determination coefficient in the range of 0.2-200 ng/L and the limits of detection of the method were 0.03-0.67 ng/L. The spiked recovery values were in the range of 87.0-119.6 %. Finally, the method was successfully applied to the detection of 19 illicit drugs in wastewater samples and also compared with the commonly used SPE method. The obtained results indicate that Fe3O4 @poly(ST/DVB/MA-COOH) has great advantages in the detection of illicit drugs in wastewater.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongyu Ning
- College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
| | - Yilei Fan
- Key Laboratory of Drug Prevention and Control Technology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Police College, Hangzhou 310053, China
| | - Hao Chen
- Key Laboratory of Drug Prevention and Control Technology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Police College, Hangzhou 310053, China
| | - Huijun Liu
- College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
| | - Zhongping Huang
- College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China.
| | - Xing Ke
- Key Laboratory of Drug Prevention and Control Technology of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Police College, Hangzhou 310053, China
| | - Yu Xu
- Key Laboratory of Drug Monitoring and Control of Zhejiang Province, National Anti-Drug Laboratory Zhejiang Regional Center, Hangzhou 310053, China
| | - Yuanbin She
- College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China.
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12
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Poetto AS, Catesini G, Dossetto P, Marchetti S, Addobbati R. Drug driving in Italy. The results of the first roadside drug testing service utilizing on-site confirmatory analysis between 2019 and 2022. Forensic Sci Int 2024; 355:111929. [PMID: 38262308 DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.111929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2024] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Drug driving represents a public safety concern, and the size of this issue in Italy is not fully known. Drug testing is composed of two steps: 1) screening and 2) confirmatory analysis. The second step, and the associate medical examination to assess the state of impairment, usually are not performed right after the screening as they require specialized personnel and instrumental equipment that are not historically available at roadblocks. These pitfalls make this process both complicated and time-consuming. METHODS A mobile laboratory was set up in 2019 by the Forensic Lab Service S.r.l. (limited liability company) to improve roadblock timing, planning, as well as to shed light on the extent of the drug driving issue in Italy. Drug screenings were performed using DrugWipe® Saliva testing. Confirmatory analysis was performed on oral fluids by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. A dedicated room of the mobile laboratory was also designed for drug driving medical assessment. RESULT 2082 samples were collected during 88 road safety services held in different locations across Italy. In total, 9 % of the tested subjects were positive to both the screening and the confirmatory analysis. The most prevalent illicit drugs found in this study were THC (72 %), followed by cocaine (41 %). Drug drivers were mostly male (93 %) and younger than 30 years of age (58 %). CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of drivers testing positive for illicit drugs resulted to be higher compared to the results obtained in the DRUID project and to other surveys previously performed in Italy. These data demonstrate the need for control services to improve road safety in regards to drug driving.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Giulio Catesini
- Forensic Lab Service Srl, Rome, Italy; Division of Metabolism, Bambino Gesù Children's Hospital, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Paolo Dossetto
- Forensic Lab Service Srl, Rome, Italy; Sciex, Milano, Italy
| | | | - Riccardo Addobbati
- Forensic Lab Service Srl, Rome, Italy; Institute for Maternal and Child Health-IRCCS Burlo Garofolo, 34137 Trieste, Italy
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13
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Van Echelpoel R, Joosten F, Parrilla M, De Wael K. Progress on the Electrochemical Sensing of Illicit Drugs. Adv Biochem Eng Biotechnol 2024. [PMID: 38273206 DOI: 10.1007/10_2023_239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
Illicit drugs are harmful substances, threatening both health and safety of societies in all corners of the world. Several policies have been developed over time to deal with this illicit drug problem, including supply reduction and harm reduction policies. Both policies require on-site detection tools to succeed, i.e. sensors that can identify illicit drugs in samples at the point-of-care. Electrochemical sensors are highly suited for this task, due to their short analysis times, low cost, high accuracy, portability and orthogonality with current technologies. In this chapter, we evaluate the latest trend in electrochemical sensing of illicit drugs, with a focus on detection of illicit drugs in seizures and body fluids. Furthermore, we will also provide an outlook on the potential of electrochemistry in wearable sensors for this purpose.
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14
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Miramontes-Buiza L, Lona-Reyes JC, Pérez-Ramírez RO, Magallón-Picazo D, Cordero-Zamora A, Gómez-Ruiz LM, Cruz-Chávez TA. [Association of illicit drug use in pregnant women and congenital syphilis in a public hospital in Mexico]. Rev Argent Microbiol 2024; 56:69-73. [PMID: 37604752 DOI: 10.1016/j.ram.2023.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2023] [Revised: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 08/23/2023] Open
Abstract
We conducted a nested case-control study within a cohort with the aim of studying the association between illicit drug use and congenital syphilis (CS). Cases were diagnosed based on treponemal and non-treponemal tests conducted both in the mother and the newborn (NB). Multivariate analysis with logistic regression was performed. A total of 6171 births with a mean gestational age of 37.8 weeks were recorded and 62 CS events were diagnosed (incidence 10.5 events/1000 NB). Associated maternal factors were illicit drug use (OR 14.08, 95% CI 1.19-166.6), <5 prenatal visits (OR 2.9, 95% CI 1.12-7.53), more than two sexual partners (OR 3.76, 95% CI 1.62-8.71) and professional education level (OR 0.06, 95% CI 0.005-0.85). Among the mothers of the cases presented, the prevalence of illicit drug use was 22.6% and the most frequent drugs were methamphetamines and cannabis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucía Miramontes-Buiza
- Infectología Pediátrica, Hospital Civil de Guadalajara «Dr. Juan I. Menchaca», Guadalajara, Jalisco, México; Centro Universitario de Tonalá, Universidad de Guadalajara, Tonalá, Jalisco, México
| | - Juan Carlos Lona-Reyes
- Infectología Pediátrica, Hospital Civil de Guadalajara «Dr. Juan I. Menchaca», Guadalajara, Jalisco, México; Centro Universitario de Tonalá, Universidad de Guadalajara, Tonalá, Jalisco, México; Centro Universitario de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Jalisco, México.
| | - Rene Oswaldo Pérez-Ramírez
- Centro Universitario de Tonalá, Universidad de Guadalajara, Tonalá, Jalisco, México; Neonatología, Hospital Civil de Guadalajara «Dr. Juan I Menchaca», Guadalajara, Jalisco, México
| | - Diego Magallón-Picazo
- Centro Universitario de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Jalisco, México
| | - Araceli Cordero-Zamora
- Infectología Pediátrica, Hospital Civil de Guadalajara «Dr. Juan I. Menchaca», Guadalajara, Jalisco, México; Centro Universitario de Tonalá, Universidad de Guadalajara, Tonalá, Jalisco, México
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15
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Hofmarcher T, Leppänen A, Månsdotter A, Strandberg J, Håkansson A. Societal costs of illegal drug use in Sweden. Int J Drug Policy 2024; 123:104259. [PMID: 38035447 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.104259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Illegal drug use is a public health concern with far-reaching consequences for people who use them and for society. In Sweden, the reported use of illegal drugs has been growing and the number of drug-induced deaths is among the highest in Europe. The aim of this study was to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date estimation of the societal costs of illegal drug use in Sweden, relying as much as possible on registry and administrative data. METHODS A prevalence-based cost-of-illness study of illegal drug use in Sweden in 2020 was conducted. A societal approach was chosen and included direct costs (such as costs of health care, social services, and the criminal justice system), indirect costs (such as lost productivity due to unemployment and drug-induced death), and intangible costs (such as reduced quality of life among people who use drugs and their family members). Costs were estimated by combining registry, administrative, and survey data with unit cost data. RESULTS The estimated societal costs of illegal drug use were 3.7 billion euros in 2020. This corresponded to 355 euros per capita and 0.78 % of the gross domestic product. The direct and intangible costs were of similar sizes, each contributing to approximately 40 % of total costs, whereas indirect costs contributed to approximately 20 %. The largest individual cost components were reduced quality of life among people who use drugs and costs of the criminal justice system. CONCLUSION Illegal drug use has a negative impact on the societal aim to create good and equitable health in Sweden. The findings call for evidence-based prevention of drug use and treatment for those addicted. It is important to address the co-morbidity of mental ill-health and drug dependence, to develop low-threshold services and measures for early prevention among children and young adults, as well as to evaluate laws and regulations connected to illegal drug use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Hofmarcher
- IHE - The Swedish Institute for Health Economics, Råbygatan 2, 22361 Lund, Sweden
| | - Anne Leppänen
- Public Health Agency of Sweden, Box 505, 83126 Östersund, Sweden
| | - Anna Månsdotter
- Public Health Agency of Sweden, Box 505, 83126 Östersund, Sweden; Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, 90187 Umeå, Sweden
| | | | - Anders Håkansson
- Clinical Addiction Research Unit, Lund University, Universitetssjukhuset, 22184 Lund, Sweden.
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16
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Focken AP, Woodsworth JM, Loewen JM. Evaluation of the use of intranasal atipamezole to reverse the sedative effects of xylazine in dogs. J Vet Emerg Crit Care (San Antonio) 2024; 34:57-62. [PMID: 38055352 DOI: 10.1111/vec.13357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Revised: 06/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/08/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To assess the ability of intranasal atipamezole to reverse sedative effects of xylazine in dogs. DESIGN Prospective proof-of-concept study. SETTING University research laboratory. ANIMAL Six healthy, staff-owned dogs. INTERVENTIONS Dogs were sedated with 1.1 mg/kg of xylazine intravenously. The sedation score of each dog was recorded every 5 minutes until they achieved a sedation score of >13/21 for 3 readings. Once achieved, 0.3 mg/kg of atipamezole was administered intranasally using a mucosal atomization device. Sedation scores continued to be recorded every 5 minutes until successful reversal was achieved (<4/21). MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Average times to standing and normal wakefulness after administration of intranasal atipamezole were 6 minutes, 30 seconds and 7 minutes, 20 seconds, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Intranasal atipamezole successfully reversed the sedation effects of xylazine. The findings of this study provide justification for future controlled prospective studies into the potential use of intranasal atipamezole in a variety of settings including exposure to xylazine in operational canines as well as bioavailability studies for optimal dosing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex P Focken
- Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
| | - Jordan M Woodsworth
- Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
| | - Jennifer M Loewen
- Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
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17
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Li X, Plotkina N, Bryksin J. Drug Screening of 49 Compounds by Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry in Saliva. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2737:195-214. [PMID: 38036823 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3541-4_19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2023]
Abstract
In recent years, the use of oral fluid as a testing matrix for drug analysis has become increasingly popular due to its benefits, such as a possibility for direct observation of a sample collection and, thus, a lower risk of adulteration. To address this trend, we have developed a quantitative LC-MS/MS method that can simultaneously analyze 49 commonly prescribed compounds in oral fluid. The assay is performed on an AB Sciex 4500 electrospray ionization mass spectrometer in multiple reaction monitoring mode.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xu Li
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | | | - Janetta Bryksin
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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18
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Verhagen R, Kaserzon SL, Thomas KV, Mueller JF, Tscharke BJ. Exploring drug consumption patterns across varying levels of remoteness in Australia. Sci Total Environ 2023; 903:166163. [PMID: 37574069 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2023] [Revised: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) relies on representative sampling that is typically achieved with autosamplers that collect time, flow, or volume proportional samples. The expense, resources and operational know-how associated with autosampler operation means they are only typically available at major wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). This results in a lack of data on consumption levels in regional and remote areas, or in countries that lack the financial means. The aim of this study was to estimate and investigate trends in drug consumption across varying levels of remoteness in Australia. Field-calibrated, microporous polyethylene passive samplers were deployed over 2 periods (Aug/Sept 2019 and 2020) at 43 treatment plants covering all five categories of remoteness, as per Australian Bureau of Statistics definitions (Major cities, Inner regional, Outer regional, Remote, and Very remote). The per capita consumption of cocaine, methylamphetamine, nicotine, oxycodone and MDMA were estimated. No spatial trends between remoteness and drug consumption were observed, except for cocaine, where Major cities had a 5-to-10-fold higher consumption compared to the other levels of remoteness in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Outer regional sites had the highest and lowest methylamphetamine consumption. The variance in drug use among sites was much higher in Remote (and Inner/Outer regional) sites when compared with Major cities. A significant and consistent decrease in oxycodone consumption was observed at all sites between 2019 and 2020, possibly related to regulatory changes and the COVID-19 pandemic where elective surgeries were suspended. The majority of sites experienced a decrease in cocaine and methylamphetamine consumption, possibly due to border restrictions or changes in supply and demand dynamics. This was the first extensive passive sampling study to assess drug consumption in urban, regional, and remote locations, demonstrating that passive samplers can facilitate extension of wastewater-based drug monitoring programs to sites where other representative sampling options are very difficult to implement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rory Verhagen
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia..
| | - Sarit L Kaserzon
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
| | - Kevin V Thomas
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
| | - Jochen F Mueller
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
| | - Benjamin J Tscharke
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, Queensland 4102, Australia
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19
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Rebucini A, Origo F, Schionato F, Romolo FS. Restrictive measures and substance use reporting: New evidence from the COVID-19 pandemic. Int J Drug Policy 2023; 122:104238. [PMID: 37890390 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.104238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Revised: 10/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, several studies have been conducted on the impact of lockdown and containment measures on various aspects of individual and social behaviour, including substance use. The increasing body of literature investigating this phenomenon emphasizes the need for additional studies at the local level. We investigate changes in reported illicit drug consumption following changes in public measures limiting individual mobility in the province of Bergamo, one of the regions that faced the most severe consequences in terms of number of cases and death toll in the early stages of the pandemic. METHODS The empirical analysis is based on a unique dataset covering all people recorded by police forces as drug users between January 2019 and December 2021 in the province of Bergamo. Data relate to reports for illicit drug consumption and not criminal activities. RESULTS Estimates show that, during periods when individual mobility was severely limited, the probability of reported cannabis consumption decreased by 8-9%, while that of reported cocaine use increased by 6-12%. No significant changes emerge in the reported consumption of heroin or polysubstance. Furthermore, while reported cannabis use returned to pre-pandemic levels once the restrictive measures were eased, the increased likelihood of reported cocaine use appears to have been more long-lasting. These findings are robust to alternative estimation strategies and different model specifications. Our study also reveals significant gender, age and housing status disparities in reported drug use. CONCLUSION We provide a novel and distinctive perspective on the topic by using previously unexploited administrative data sources. We show that the relationship between restrictions and reported drug use varies by type of substance. Our methodology and findings can support the design of targeted policies for better resource allocation and improved public health outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Rebucini
- Department of Economics, Università degli Studi di Bergamo, Via dei Caniana 2, 24127 Bergamo, Italy.
| | - Federica Origo
- Department of Economics, Università degli Studi di Bergamo, Via dei Caniana 2, 24127 Bergamo, Italy; IZA, Bonn, Germany
| | - Francesca Schionato
- Department of Law, Università degli Studi di Bergamo, Via dei Caniana 2, 24127 Bergamo, Italy
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Salomon A, Bartlett M, Chenery M, Jauncey M, Roxburgh A. Outrage and algorithms: Shifting drug-related stigma in a digital world. Int J Drug Policy 2023; 122:104224. [PMID: 37857181 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.104224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Illicit drug dependence is one of the most stigmatised health conditions worldwide and the harmful impacts of stigma for people who use drugs are well documented. The use of stigmatising language about drugs in traditional media is also well documented. The increasing use of digital media platforms has revolutionised the way we communicate, and extended the reach of our messages. However, there are issues specific to the ways in which these platforms operate that have the potential to increase drug-related stigma. This paper outlines the importance of language, narrative, and imagery in reducing this stigma. It discusses the challenges digital media platforms present to achieving this goal, including the use of engagement strategies that trigger fear and increase stigma, the potential for amplifying stigmatising messages by using algorithms, and the potential for dissemination of misinformation. Key strategies to frame conversations about drug use are presented including 1) appeal to values of fairness and equity rather than scaring people; 2) avoid correcting misinformation as it strengthens unhelpful stigmatising frames of drug use; and 3) create a new narrative, focusing on the diversity of experiences of people who use drugs. Internationally we are at a critical juncture with respect to drug policy reform, and efforts to reduce drug-related stigma are central to building support for these reforms. The extensive reach of digital media platforms represents an important opportunity to communicate about illicit drug use. The challenge is to do so in a way that minimises stigma. If we are to achieve change, a narrative that puts values, people, health care and equity at the centre of the conversation is critical.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mark Bartlett
- Uniting Medically Supervised Injecting Centre, Sydney, Australia
| | | | - Marianne Jauncey
- Uniting Medically Supervised Injecting Centre, Sydney, Australia; Discipline of Addiction Medicine, the Central Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, the Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia; National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW, Sydney, Australia
| | - Amanda Roxburgh
- Harm and Risk Reduction Program, Burnet Institute, Melbourne, Australia; Monash Addiction Research Centre, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia; Discipline of Addiction Medicine, the Central Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, the Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia; National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW, Sydney, Australia.
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21
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Bråthen CC, Jørgenrud BM, Bogstrand ST, Gjerde H, Rosseland LA, Kristiansen T. Prevalence of use and impairment from drugs and alcohol among trauma patients: A national prospective observational study. Injury 2023; 54:111160. [PMID: 37944451 DOI: 10.1016/j.injury.2023.111160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2023] [Revised: 10/22/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Being under the influence of psychoactive substances increases the risk of involvement in and dying from a traumatic event. The study is a prospective population-based observational study that aims to determine the prevalence of use and likely impairment from psychoactive substances among patients with suspected severe traumatic injury. METHOD This study was conducted at 35 of 38 Norwegian trauma hospitals from 1 March 2019 to 29 February 2020. All trauma admissions for patients aged ≥ 16 years admitted via trauma team activation during the study period were eligible for inclusion. Blood samples collected on admission were analysed for alcohol, benzodiazepines, benzodiazepine-like hypnotics (Z-drugs), opioids, stimulants, and cannabis (tetrahydrocannabinol). RESULTS Of the 4878 trauma admissions included, psychoactive substances were detected in 1714 (35 %) and in 771 (45 %) of these, a combination of two or more psychoactive substances was detected. Regarding the level of impairment, 1373 (28 %) admissions revealed a concentration of one or more psychoactive substances indicating likely impairment, and 1052 (22 %) highly impairment. Alcohol was found in 1009 (21 %) admissions, benzodiazepines and Z-drugs in 613 (13 %), opioids in 467 (10 %), cannabis in 352 (7 %), and stimulants in 371 (8 %). Men aged 27-43 years and patients with violence-related trauma had the highest prevalence of psychoactive substance use with respectively 424 (50 %) and 275 (80 %) testing positive for one or more compounds. CONCLUSION The results revealed psychoactive substances in 35 % of trauma admissions, 80 % of which were likely impaired at the time of traumatic injury. A combination of several psychoactive substances was common, and younger males and patients with violence-related injuries were most often impaired. Injury prevention strategies should focus on high-risk groups and involve the prescription of controlled substances. We should consider toxicological screening in trauma admissions and incorporation of toxicological data into trauma registries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla C Bråthen
- Department of Acute Medicine, Division of Elverum-Hamar, Innlandet Hospital Trust, 2381 Brumunddal, Norway; Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, 0318 Oslo, Norway.
| | - Benedicte M Jørgenrud
- Department of Forensic Sciences, Division of Laboratory Medicine, Section of Drug Abuse Research, Oslo University Hospital, 0424 Oslo, Norway
| | - Stig Tore Bogstrand
- Department of Forensic Sciences, Division of Laboratory Medicine, Section of Drug Abuse Research, Oslo University Hospital, 0424 Oslo, Norway; Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing and Health Promotion, Acute and Critical Illness, Oslo Metropolitan University, 0130 Oslo, Norway; Department of Public Health Science, Institute of Health and Society, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, 0318 Oslo, Norway
| | - Hallvard Gjerde
- Department of Forensic Sciences, Division of Laboratory Medicine, Section of Drug Abuse Research, Oslo University Hospital, 0424 Oslo, Norway
| | - Leiv Arne Rosseland
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, 0318 Oslo, Norway; Department of Research & Development, Division of Emergencies and Critical Care, Oslo University Hospital, 0424 Oslo, Norway
| | - Thomas Kristiansen
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, 0318 Oslo, Norway; Department of Anaesthesiology, Division of Emergencies and Critical Care, Radiumhospitalet, Oslo University Hospital, 0424 Oslo, Norway
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22
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Douglass CH, Win TM, Goutzamanis S, Lim MSC, Block K, Onsando G, Hellard M, Higgs P, Livingstone C, Horyniak D. Stigma Associated with Alcohol and Other Drug Use Among People from Migrant and Ethnic Minority Groups: Results from a Systematic Review of Qualitative Studies. J Immigr Minor Health 2023; 25:1402-1425. [PMID: 36976449 PMCID: PMC10632266 DOI: 10.1007/s10903-023-01468-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
Abstract
Stigma reduces access to alcohol and other drug (AOD) support. This systematic review explored perceptions and experiences of stigma associated with AOD use among migrant and ethnic minority groups. Qualitative studies published in English were identified using six databases. Two reviewers screened and critically appraised articles using the Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklist for qualitative studies. Data were synthesised using best fit framework synthesis. Twenty-three studies were included. Stigma drivers and facilitators included stereotypes, socio-cultural norms, legal responses and precarious lived experiences. Stigma intersected with gender, citizenship, race and ethnicity and manifested though shame, exclusion, secondary stigma and discrimination in treatment. Outcomes and impacts included avoidance of services, emotional distress, isolation and loneliness. This review identified similar stigma experiences to other populations, however outcomes were complicated by precarious lived experiences and multiple stigmatised identities. Multi-level interventions are required to reduce AOD-related stigma for migrant and ethnic minority groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin H Douglass
- Burnet Institute Australia, 85 Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia.
- Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, 207 Bouverie Street, Carlton, VIC, 3053, Australia.
| | - Thin Mar Win
- Burnet Institute Myanmar, 226 Wizaya Plaza, U Wisara Road, Yangon, Myanmar
| | | | - Megan S C Lim
- Burnet Institute Australia, 85 Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
- Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, 207 Bouverie Street, Carlton, VIC, 3053, Australia
- Monash School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
| | - Karen Block
- Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, 207 Bouverie Street, Carlton, VIC, 3053, Australia
| | - Gerald Onsando
- Melbourne School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Melbourne, 420 John Medley Building, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia
| | - Margaret Hellard
- Burnet Institute Australia, 85 Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
- Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, 207 Bouverie Street, Carlton, VIC, 3053, Australia
- Monash School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
| | - Peter Higgs
- Burnet Institute Australia, 85 Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
- Public Health Department, La Trobe University, Plenty Road, Bundoora, VIC, 3086, Australia
| | - Charles Livingstone
- Monash School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
| | - Danielle Horyniak
- Burnet Institute Australia, 85 Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
- Monash School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia
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23
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Owusu-Bempah A, Nicholson HL, Butler A, Croxford R, Kouyoumdjian FG. Opioid toxicity deaths in Black persons who experienced provincial incarceration in Ontario, Canada 2015-2020: A population-based study. Prev Med 2023; 177:107778. [PMID: 37967621 DOI: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2023.107778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2023] [Revised: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE In the context of mass incarceration and the opioid toxicity crisis in North America, there is a lack of data on the burden of opioid toxicity deaths in Black persons who experience incarceration. We aimed to describe absolute and relative opioid toxicity mortality for Black persons who experienced incarceration in Ontario, Canada between 2015 and 2020. METHODS We linked data for all persons incarcerated in provincial correctional facilities and all persons who died from opioid toxicity in Ontario between 2015 and 2020, and accessed public data on population sizes. We described the characteristics of Black persons who were incarcerated and died from opioid toxicity, and calculated absolute mortality rates, as well as age-standardized mortality rates compared with all persons in Ontario not incarcerated during this period. RESULTS Between 2015 and 2020, 0.9% (n = 137) of 16,177 Black persons who experienced incarceration died from opioid toxicity in custody or post-release, for an opioid toxicity death rate of 0.207 per 100 person years. In the two weeks post-release, the opioid toxicity death rate was 1.34 per 100 person years. Standardized for age and compared with persons not incarcerated, the mortality ratio (SMR) was 17.8 (95%CI 16.4-23.1) for Black persons who experienced incarceration. CONCLUSIONS We identified a large, inequitable burden of opioid toxicity death for Black persons who experience incarceration in Ontario, Canada. Work is needed to support access to culturally appropriate prevention and treatment in custody and post-release for persons who are Black, and to prevent incarceration and improve determinants of health.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Harvey L Nicholson
- University of Toronto Department of Sociology, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
| | - Amanda Butler
- McMaster University Department of Family Medicine, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada; Department of Criminology, Simon Fraser University, Canada.
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24
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Griffin A, Kirkbride KP, Henry J, Painter B, Linacre A. Comparison of three DNA extraction methods tested on illicit drug-related powders. Forensic Sci Int Genet 2023; 67:102927. [PMID: 37579544 DOI: 10.1016/j.fsigen.2023.102927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2022] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 08/16/2023]
Abstract
The detection of human DNA on and within illicit drug preparations is novel and a focus of current research. Previous studies have indicated that certain drug-related powders present in illicit drug preparations can interfere with downstream DNA analysis when directly added to the PCR. Therefore, it is important to determine if these drug-related powders are effectively removed during the DNA extraction or whether traces of powder remain to interfere with DNA processing. Three extraction methods were selected to assess their efficiency at removing drug-related powders for downstream processes using DNA from both saliva and touch depositions. This is the first study to compare efficiencies of DNA extraction methods from drug-related powders. The extraction methods compared were the DNA IQ™ System, the QIAamp® DNA Investigator Kit and the combination of a simple lysis step followed by use of the Microcon® DNA Fast Flow device. Saliva was added to dimethylsulfone (DMS), nitrostyrene and PROSOLV® tablet mixture to determine the effect of powder type (based on solubility). Saliva was also added to 0, 50, 200 and 400 mg of DMS to determine the effect of an increase in DMS quantity. Trace DNA was deposited onto DMS using a worn glove approach. These samples were re-tested six months post-DNA deposition and profiled for further comparisons. Ten replicates were conducted for each condition with five replicates of saliva positive controls per method (n = 255 samples). A subset of samples was chemically analysed to determine if DMS was present in the final DNA eluant. The readily soluble DMS did not interfere with any of the extraction methods at lower amounts, however increasing the DMS to 400 mg reduced the relative DNA yields using the Microcon® and Investigator methods. The tablet mixture reduced the relative DNA yield of all three methods, however the nitrostyrene (which was relatively insoluble) only reduced the relative DNA yield of the DNA IQ™. The Investigator method performed the best with the trace samples, followed by the Microcon® method and then the DNA IQ™. DMS was detected in all extracts chemically analysed from the DNA IQ™ and Microcon®, whereas only one sample tested from the Investigator kit contained DMS in the extract and was in a relatively low amount compared to the other samples. Not one kit outperformed the others in all comparisons, however the Investigator kit was the most efficient overall at optimising the DNA yield whilst also removing the powders more effectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy Griffin
- College of Science & Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide 5042, Australia.
| | - K Paul Kirkbride
- College of Science & Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide 5042, Australia
| | - Julianne Henry
- College of Science & Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide 5042, Australia; Forensic Science SA, GPO Box 2790, Adelaide 5000, Australia
| | - Ben Painter
- College of Science & Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide 5042, Australia; Forensic Science SA, GPO Box 2790, Adelaide 5000, Australia
| | - Adrian Linacre
- College of Science & Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide 5042, Australia
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25
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Lawrence TI, Sims N, Kasprzyk-Hordern B, Jonnalagadda SB, Martincigh BS. Wastewater profiling of illicit drugs, an estimation of community consumption: A case study of eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa. Environ Pollut 2023; 335:122270. [PMID: 37516292 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.122270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Revised: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 07/31/2023]
Abstract
Estimation of community-wide consumption of illicit drugs through wastewater analysis is a new concept in Africa although widely applied in developed nations as wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE). It is an important tool that can be used in understanding supply and demand patterns of illicit drug use on a local, national, and international scale. Information on illicit drug use is currently limited in Africa, because of a lack of monitoring structures by governments and financial constraints. This study hopes to bridge that gap by contributing to Africa's baseline information on illicit drug use. This study provides the first application of wastewater analysis to quantitatively evaluate daily illicit drug use in the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality of KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa by quantifying the major urinary excreted metabolites, called drug target residues (DTRs), in raw wastewater from four major wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) sampled for a week. The results showed that cocaine was the dominant illicit drug consumed in the catchment followed by amphetamine, methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine and 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine, with a per capita use of 360-3000 mg day-1 1000 inh-1, 47-800 mg day-1 1000 inh-1, 19-120 mg day -1 1000 inh-1, not detected (ND) to 4.9 mg day-1 1000 inh-1, and ND to 410 g day-1 1000 inh-1 respectively. The weekly usage patterns between the four WWTPs differed probably due to the lifestyle of the populace serving the different WWTPs. These results provide useful data on illicit drug use in eThekwini that can be utilised by public health agencies to implement suitable response strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tolulope I Lawrence
- School of Chemistry and Physics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville Campus, Private Bag X54001, Durban, 4000, South Africa.
| | - Natalie Sims
- Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
| | | | - Sreekantha B Jonnalagadda
- School of Chemistry and Physics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville Campus, Private Bag X54001, Durban, 4000, South Africa
| | - Bice S Martincigh
- School of Chemistry and Physics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville Campus, Private Bag X54001, Durban, 4000, South Africa.
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26
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Egli M, Rapp-Wright H, Oloyede O, Francis W, Preston-Allen R, Friedman S, Woodward G, Piel FB, Barron LP. A One-Health environmental risk assessment of contaminants of emerging concern in London's waterways throughout the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Environ Int 2023; 180:108210. [PMID: 37778289 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2023.108210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic had huge impacts on global urban populations, activity and health, yet little is known about attendant consequences for urban river ecosystems. We detected significant changes in occurrence and risks from contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in waterways across Greater London (UK) during the pandemic. We were able to rapidly identify and monitor large numbers of CECs in n = 390 samples across 2019-2021 using novel direct-injection liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry methods for scalable targeted analysis, suspect screening and prioritisation of CEC risks. A total of 10,029 measured environmental concentrations (MECs) were obtained for 66 unique CECs. Pharmaceutical MECs decreased during lockdown in 2020 in the R. Thames (p ≤ 0.001), but then increased significantly in 2021 (p ≤ 0.01). For the tributary rivers, the R. Lee, Beverley Brook, R. Wandle and R. Hogsmill were the most impacted, primarily via wastewater treatment plant effluent and combined sewer overflows. In the R. Hogsmill in particular, pharmaceutical MEC trends were generally correlated with NHS prescription statistics, likely reflecting limited wastewater dilution. Suspect screening of ∼ 1,200 compounds tentatively identified 25 additional CECs at the five most impacted sites, including metabolites such as O-desmethylvenlafaxine, an EU Watch List compound. Lastly, risk quotients (RQs) ≥ 0.1 were calculated for 21 compounds across the whole Greater London freshwater catchment, of which seven were of medium risk (RQ ≥ 1.0) and three were in the high-risk category (RQ ≥ 10), including imidacloprid (RQ = 19.6), azithromycin (15.7) and diclofenac (10.5). This is the largest spatiotemporal dataset of its kind for any major capital city globally and the first for Greater London, representing ∼ 16 % of the population of England, and delivering a foundational One-Health case study in the third largest city in Europe across a global pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie Egli
- Environmental Research Group, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Sir Michael Uren Hub, 86 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK; MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Helena Rapp-Wright
- Environmental Research Group, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Sir Michael Uren Hub, 86 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK; MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Olukemi Oloyede
- Environmental Research Group, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Sir Michael Uren Hub, 86 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK; MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - William Francis
- Environmental Research Group, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Sir Michael Uren Hub, 86 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK; UK Small Area Health Statistics Unit (SAHSU), Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Rhys Preston-Allen
- Georgina Mace Centre for the Living Planet, Dept. Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park, Brackhurst Road SL5 7PY, UK
| | - Stav Friedman
- Environmental Research Group, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Sir Michael Uren Hub, 86 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK; MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Guy Woodward
- Georgina Mace Centre for the Living Planet, Dept. Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park, Brackhurst Road SL5 7PY, UK
| | - Frédéric B Piel
- UK Small Area Health Statistics Unit (SAHSU), Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK; MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Leon P Barron
- Environmental Research Group, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Sir Michael Uren Hub, 86 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK; Dept. Analytical & Environmental Sciences, King's College London, 150 Stamford St., London SE1 9NH, UK; MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London, London, UK.
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27
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Zhao J, Lu J, Zhao H, Yan Y, Dong H. In five wastewater treatment plants in Xinjiang, China: Removal processes for illicit drugs, their occurrence in receiving river waters, and ecological risk assessment. Chemosphere 2023; 339:139668. [PMID: 37517667 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.139668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Revised: 07/24/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023]
Abstract
Residues of illicit drugs are frequently detected in wastewater, but data on their removal efficiency by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and the ecological risks to the aquatic environment are lacking in this study. The research evaluates the residues, mass load, drug removal efficiency, and risk assessment of illicit drugs in WWTPs and aquatic environments (lakes) in Xinjiang, China. Initially, the concentration (incidence) and mass load of 10 selected illicit drugs were analyzed through wastewater analysis. The detected substances included methamphetamine (METH), morphine (MOR), 3,4-methylenedioxy methamphetamine (MDMA), methadone (MTD), cocaine (COC), benzoylecgonine (BE), ketamine (KET), and codeine (COD), with concentrations ranging from 0.11 ± 0.01 ng/L (methadone) to 48.26 ± 25.05 ng/L (morphine). Notably, morphine (59.74 ± 5.82 g/day) and methamphetamine (41.81 ± 4.91 g/day) contributed significantly to the WWTPs. Next, the drug removal efficiency by different sewage treatment processes was ranked as follows: Anaerobic-Oxic (A/O) combined Membrane Bio-Reactor (MBR) treatment process > Oxidation ditch treatment process > Anaerobic-Anoxic-Oxic (A2/O) treatment process > Anaerobic-Anoxic-Oxic combined Membrane Bio-Reactor treatment process. Finally, the research reviewed the concentration and toxicity assessments of these substances in the aquatic environment (lakes). The results indicated that Lake1 presented a medium risk level concerning the impact of illicit drugs on the aquatic environment, whereas the other lakes exhibited a low risk level. As a result, it is recommended to conduct long-term monitoring and source analysis of illicit drugs, specifically in Lake1, for further investigation. In conclusion, to enhance the understanding of the effects of illicit drugs on the environment, future research should expand the list of target analytes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Zhao
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Environmental Monitoring and Pollutant Control of Xinjiang Bingtuan, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China
| | - Jianjiang Lu
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Environmental Monitoring and Pollutant Control of Xinjiang Bingtuan, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China.
| | - Haijun Zhao
- The First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China
| | - Yujun Yan
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Environmental Monitoring and Pollutant Control of Xinjiang Bingtuan, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China
| | - Hongyu Dong
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Environmental Monitoring and Pollutant Control of Xinjiang Bingtuan, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China
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28
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Klima M, Auwärter V, Altenburger MJ, Neukamm MA. In vitro studies on the dependence of drug deposition in dentin on drug concentration, contact time, and the physicochemical properties of the drugs. Arch Toxicol 2023; 97:2675-2685. [PMID: 37587384 PMCID: PMC10474980 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-023-03573-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/02/2023] [Indexed: 08/18/2023]
Abstract
The chemical analysis of dental hard tissues can provide information on previous drug use due to the deposition of drugs into this tissue. For the interpretation of analytical results in, e.g., postmortem toxicology or regarding archeological samples, the influence of drug dosing, consumption frequency, duration of intake and type of drug on analyte concentrations in teeth has to be characterized. To approximate these correlations, in vitro models were applied to investigate the time dependency of drug deposition via and against pulp pressure (perfusion studies) and the concentration dependency of drug deposition via oral cavity (incubation study) as well as the influence of de- and remineralization (pH cycling) on the incorporation of drugs in bovine dentin pellets. Some of the drugs of abuse most relevant in forensic case work (amphetamines, opiates, cocaine and benzoylecgonine) were applied. Concentrations in dentin samples were analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) after pulverization and extraction via ultrasonication with methanol. The studies showed that drug deposition in dentin likely depends on the physicochemical properties of the drug molecules as well as on the duration of contact with drugs via the blood stream and on drug concentrations present in the oral cavity. Higher drug concentrations in teeth can result from a more frequent or longer drug use. In addition, intake of higher doses or oral/inhalative consumption can also be expected to lead to higher drug concentrations. These findings can be helpful for the interpretation of postmortem cases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miriam Klima
- Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Toxicology, Labor Berlin-Charité Vivantes GmbH, Berlin, Germany
| | - Volker Auwärter
- Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Markus J Altenburger
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Department of Operative Dentistry and Periodontology, Center for Dental Medicine, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Merja A Neukamm
- Institute of Forensic Medicine, Forensic Toxicology, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
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29
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Bormann NL, Weber AN, Miskle B, Woodson-DeFauw N, Arndt S, Lynch AC. Perceived risk of LSD varies with age and race: evidence from 2019 United States cross-sectional data. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 2023; 58:1503-1508. [PMID: 36879096 DOI: 10.1007/s00127-023-02448-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/08/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Psychedelics are being explored for their potential therapeutic benefits across a wide range of psychiatric diagnoses and may usher in a new age in psychiatric treatment. There is stigma associated with these currently illegal substances, and use varies by race and age. We hypothesized that minoritized racial and ethnic populations, relative to White respondents, would perceive psychedelic use as riskier. METHODS Using 2019 cross-sectional data from the National Survey of Drug Use and Health, we conducted a secondary analysis of 41,679 respondents. Perceived risk of heroin was used as a surrogate for overall risk of illegal substance use; heroin and lysergic acid diethylamide were the only substances queried this way in the sample. RESULTS A majority regarded lysergic acid diethylamide (66.7%) and heroin (87.3%) as a great risk if used once or twice. There were clear differences by race, with White respondents and those indicating more than one race having significantly lower perceived risk of lysergic acid diethylamide than respondents from other groups. Perceived risk of use also significantly increased with age. CONCLUSION Perceived risk of lysergic acid diethylamide is unevenly distributed across the population. Stigma and racial disparities in drug-related crimes likely contribute to this. As research into potential therapeutic indications for psychedelics continues, perceived risk of use may change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas L Bormann
- Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University, 355 W 16th St.,, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA.
| | - Andrea N Weber
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Benjamin Miskle
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Nicole Woodson-DeFauw
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Family Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Stephan Arndt
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Biostatistics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Alison C Lynch
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Family Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
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Cain D, Salsabilian B, Jones SS, Starks TJ. Substance Use, Sexual Agreements, and Sexual Risk Behaviors Among Adolescent Sexual Minority Males (Aged 13-17) in the United States. J Adolesc Health 2023; 73:746-752. [PMID: 37410007 PMCID: PMC10526709 DOI: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2023.05.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2022] [Revised: 05/15/2023] [Accepted: 05/31/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Despite the fact that adolescence represents a distinct developmental period wherein dating and sexual relationships are emergent, much of what is known about substance use, sexual agreements, and sexual risk behaviors among adolescent sexual minority males (ASMM) is extrapolated from research on adults. This study tested associations between substance use and sexual risk behaviors among ASMM and examined whether relationship status and sexual agreements moderated these associations. METHODS Cross-sectional online survey data were collected from 2,892 HIV negative ASMM aged 13-17 years between November 2017 and March 2020. All were sexually active with male partners and not on pre-exposure prophylaxis. A multigroup hurdle model predicted the occurrence and frequency of condomless anal sex (CAS) with casual partners. RESULTS Non-monogamous ASMM were more likely to use illicit drugs and more likely to have CAS with casual partners compared with single ASMM and those in monogamous relationships. Among ASMM who had CAS at least once, those in relationships (both monogamous and nonmonogamous) had CAS more frequently than single ASMM. Binge drinking (odds ratio (OR) = 1.47, p < .001), cannabis (OR = 1.30, p < .001), and illicit drug use (including prescription drug misuse) (OR = 1.77, p < .001) were associated with the occurrence of CAS with casual partners but only binge drinking (rate ratio (RR) = 1.23, p = .027) and illicit drugs (RR = 1.75, p < .001) were associated with its frequency. DISCUSSION While results aligned with adult studies in many respects, unlike adult sexual minority males, these findings suggest partnered ASMM-particularly those in nonmonogamous relationships-were at highest risk of substance use and associated sexual HIV transmission risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Demetria Cain
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, New York.
| | - Beeta Salsabilian
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, New York
| | - S Scott Jones
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, New York
| | - Tyrel J Starks
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, New York; Health Psychology and Clinical Science Doctoral Program, Graduate Center of the City University of New York, New York, New York
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Ale-Ebrahim J, Afrashteh S, Janani L, Seyed Alinaghi SA, Motevalian SA, Kasavandi A, Sedgh Azar M, Sajadipour M, Farhoudi B, Abbasi-Ghahramanloo A. Multiple Substance Use Patterns and Its Relationship with Imprisonment in a High-Risk Group of Iranian Adults. J Res Health Sci 2023; 23:e00590. [PMID: 38315905 PMCID: PMC10660508 DOI: 10.34172/jrhs.2023.125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2023] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Substance use is recognized as an important factor associated with many diseases and premature deaths and the main risk factor for disability worldwide. This study aims to identify subgroups of substance use in adults and detect the effect of imprisonment on the membership of participants in latent classes of substance use. Study Design: A cross-sectional study. METHODS This study was performed on 930 adult people who were referred to behavioral health counseling centers in Tehran province. All participants completed some checklists and questionnaires. Data analysis was performed using chi-square, Fisher's exact test, and latent class analysis (LCA). RESULTS Four latent classes were identified, including non-users (58%), cigarette smokers (11.6%), users of low stigma substances (27.4%), and drug users (3.1%). After adjusting for other studied variables, having a history of imprisonment increased the odds of membership in the cigarette smoker class (Odds ratio [OR]=5.82, 95%, confidence interval [CI]: 3.19-10.63) and drug user class (OR=53.59, 95% CI: 18.00- 159.52) compared to non-user class. Among all participants, 84 (9.0%) had a history of imprisonment. CONCLUSION Results from the present study indicate that 30.5% of the participants fell under the user of the low-stigma substance or drug user group. Focusing on increasing prisoner's knowledge of the dangers of using different substances and considering various programs for prisoners' leisure time may help reduce substance use prevalence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jalal Ale-Ebrahim
- Department of Epidemiology, Iran University of Medical Sciences Tehran, Iran
| | - Sima Afrashteh
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Health and Nutrition, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
| | - Leila Janani
- Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Seyed Ahmad Seyed Alinaghi
- Iranian Research Center for HIV/AIDS, Iranian Institute for Reduction of High-Risk Behaviors, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Seyed Abbas Motevalian
- Research Center for Addiction and High-Risk Behaviors (ReCARB), Psychosocial Health Research Institute, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Arezoo Kasavandi
- Department of Microbiology, Shahr-e-Qods Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mahdi Sedgh Azar
- Head of Behavioral Disease Counselling Center Boali, Vice Chancellor of Health, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mansour Sajadipour
- Department of Epidemiology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Behnam Farhoudi
- Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Amiralmomenin Hospital, Tehran Medical Sciences Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
| | - Abbas Abbasi-Ghahramanloo
- Department of Public Health, School of Health, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
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Wadds P, Doran CM, Shakeshaft A, Tran DA. "It's like a safety net for when things go wrong": key stakeholder and program user perspectives on a peer-led safe space program in Sydney, Australia. Harm Reduct J 2023; 20:129. [PMID: 37689666 PMCID: PMC10492353 DOI: 10.1186/s12954-023-00854-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/20/2023] [Indexed: 09/11/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Safe Spaces are a harm reduction approach commonly utilised in nightlife and festival settings to address alcohol and other drug-related harms. Despite increasing use, there has been little independent evaluation of safe space programs. This study aimed to explore (1) program user satisfaction with and use of a safe space program implemented in Sydney, Australia (The Take Kare Safe Space (TKSS)), and (2) the strengths and weaknesses of TKSS from the perspective of key stakeholders. METHODS Semi-structured, in-depth, interviews lasting between 30 min to 1 h were conducted with 38 key program stakeholders, including staff from police (n = 4), ambulance (n = 4), a local hospital accident and emergency room (n = 4), local council (n = 2), city 'rangers' (n = 2), the TKSS program (n = 4), licensed venues and other nightlife service providers (n = 4), and program users (n = 14). Purposive sampling was used to identify key stakeholders to participate in interviews. RESULTS Stakeholders stated that the TKSS program had a number of core benefits, including that it filled a service gap in nightlife settings; improved the efficiency and effectiveness of emergency services and other stakeholders operating in nightlife precincts; provided welfare services through proactive and non-judgmental interventions; and facilitated a means to de-escalate conflict without engaging police. Perceived weaknesses of the program included a lack of public awareness about the program; staff and volunteer levels; and misunderstandings regarding the scope and function of the TKSS program by some stakeholders. CONCLUSION This study demonstrates the complex relationships that exist around the delivery of harm reduction in nightlife settings. In particular, it highlights the relative lack of servicing of public nightlife settings and the value of safe spaces/peer-to-peer safety ambassador programs in linking up care and filling this service gap. Further, it documents the extended benefit across key stakeholder groups of delivering proactive and non-judgemental harm reduction services and, in doing so, provides critical evidence around their efficacy in reducing AOD-related harms in the night-time economy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phillip Wadds
- School of Law Society and Criminology, Faculty of Law and Justice, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
| | - Christopher M Doran
- Cluster for Resilience and Well-Being, School of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, Australia
| | - Anthony Shakeshaft
- Centre for Indigenous Health, Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia
| | - Dam Anh Tran
- NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
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Spencer N. Does drug decriminalization increase unintentional drug overdose deaths?: Early evidence from Oregon Measure 110. J Health Econ 2023; 91:102798. [PMID: 37556870 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2023.102798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Revised: 05/10/2023] [Accepted: 07/23/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023]
Abstract
This paper evaluates the causal effect of drug decriminalization on unintentional drug overdose deaths in a context with relatively poor access to drug treatment services. Using the synthetic control method, I find that when Oregon decriminalized small amounts of drugs in February 2021, it caused 182 additional unintentional drug overdose deaths to occur in Oregon in 2021. This represents a 23% increase over the number of unintentional drug overdose deaths predicted if Oregon had not decriminalized drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah Spencer
- Department of Economics, University of Toronto, 150 St. George Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3G7, Canada.
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Caulkins JP, Reimer KV. When prohibition works: Comparing fireworks and cannabis regulations, markets, and harms. Int J Drug Policy 2023; 118:104081. [PMID: 37315476 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.104081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Revised: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/28/2023] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Nations wrestle with whether to prohibit products that can harm consumers and third parties but whose prohibition creates illegal markets. For example, cannabis is banned in most of the world, but supply for non-medical use has been legalized in Uruguay, Canada, and much of the United States and possession restrictions have been liberalized in other countries. Likewise, supply and possession of fireworks have been subject to varying degrees of prohibition in multiple countries, with those bans prompting significant evasion. METHODS Current and past history of fireworks regulations, sales, and harms are reviewed and contrasted with those for cannabis. The focus is on the United States, but literature from other countries is incorporated when possible and appropriate. This extends the insightful literature comparing drugs to other vices (such as gambling and prostitution) by comparing a drug to a risky pleasure that is not seen as a vice but which has been subject to prohibition. RESULTS There are many parallels between fireworks and cannabis in legal approaches, harms to "users", harms to others, and other externalities. In the U.S. the timing of prohibitions were similar, with prohibitions on fireworks being imposed a little later and repealed a little sooner. Internationally, the countries that are strictest with fireworks are not always those that are strictest with drugs. By some measures, harms are of roughly similar magnitude. During the last years of U.S. cannabis prohibition, there were about 10 emergency department (ED) events per million dollars spent on both fireworks and illegal cannabis, but fireworks generated very roughly three times as many ED events per hour of use/enjoyment. There are also differences, e.g., punishments were less harsh for violating fireworks prohibitions, fireworks consumption is heavily concentrated in just a few days or weeks per year, and illegal distribution is primarily of diverted legal products, not of illegally produced materials. CONCLUSIONS The absence of hysteria over fireworks problems and policies suggests that societies can address complex tradeoffs involving risky pleasures without excessive acrimony or divisiveness when that product or activity is not construed as a vice. However, the conflicted and time-varying history of fireworks bans also show that difficulty balancing freedoms and pleasure with harms to users and others is not restricted to drugs or other vices. Use-related harms fell when fireworks were banned and rose when those bans were repealed, so fireworks prohibitions can be seen as "working" from a public health perspective, but not well enough for bans to be employed in all times or places.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan P Caulkins
- Carnegie Mellon University, Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
| | - Kristina Vaia Reimer
- Carnegie Mellon University, Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
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Cascalheira CJ, Nelson J, Flinn RE, Zhao Y, Helminen EC, Scheer JR, Stone AL. High-risk polysubstance use among LGBTQ+ people who use drugs in the United States: An application of syndemic theory. Int J Drug Policy 2023; 118:104103. [PMID: 37413908 PMCID: PMC10528101 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.104103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2023] [Revised: 04/16/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Compared to heterosexual and cisgender people, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ+) people are more likely to develop problems with high-risk polysubstance use. According to syndemic theory, this disparity in high-risk polysubstance use is produced by the LGBTQ+ community's increased vulnerability to experiencing psychosocial (e.g., discrimination, unwanted sex) and structural (e.g., food insecurity, homelessness) conditions, greater likelihood of coping with concurrent health problems (e.g., human immunodeficiency virus [HIV]), and decreased opportunities to develop protective factors (e.g., social support, resilience). METHODS Data from 306 LGBTQ+ participants living in the United States (U.S.) with a lifetime history of alcohol and drug use were analyzed; 21.2% reported lifetime problems with 10 different drugs. Bootstrapped hierarchical multiple regression was used to test demographic correlates and syndemic predictors of high-risk polysubstance use. One-way ANOVA and post-hoc comparison tests were used to test subgroup differences by gender. RESULTS Results indicated that income, food insecurity, sexual orientation-based discrimination, and social support were associated with high-risk polysubstance use, explaining 43.9% of the variance of high-risk polysubstance use. Age, race, unwanted sex, gender identity-based discrimination, and resilience were not significant. Group comparison tests revealed that, compared to nonbinary people and cisgender sexual minority men and women, transgender individuals experienced significantly higher levels of high-risk polysubstance use and sexual orientation-based discrimination but significantly lower levels of homelessness and social support. CONCLUSION This study provided further evidence for conceptualizing polysubstance use as an adverse outcome of syndemic conditions. Harm reduction strategies, anti-discrimination laws, and gender-affirming residential treatment options should be considered in U.S. drug policy. Clinical implications include targeting syndemic conditions to reduce high-risk polysubstance use among LGBTQ+ people who use drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cory J Cascalheira
- Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA; Department of Psychology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USA.
| | - Jessie Nelson
- Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
| | - Ryan E Flinn
- Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA
| | - Yuxuan Zhao
- Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
| | - Emily C Helminen
- Department of Psychology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Jillian R Scheer
- Department of Psychology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Amy L Stone
- Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Trinity University, San Antonio, TX, USA
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Lee HJ, Oh JE. Target and suspect screening of (new) psychoactive substances in South Korean wastewater by LC-HRMS. Sci Total Environ 2023; 875:162613. [PMID: 36871726 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 02/27/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
New psychoactive substances (NPS) are a type of abused drug designed to mimic the effects of the currently known illicit drugs, whose structures are constantly changing to escape surveillance. The quick identification of NPS use in the community therefore demands immediate action. This study aimed to develop a target and suspect screening method using LC-HRMS to identify NPS in wastewater samples. An in-house database of 95 traditional and NPS was built using the reference standards, and an analytical method was developed. Wastewater samples were collected from 29 wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) across South Korea, representing 50 % of the total population. The psychoactive substances in waste water samples were screened using in-house database and developed analytical methods. A total of 14 substances were detected in the target analysis, including three NPS (N-methyl-2-AI, 25E-NBOMe, and 25D-NBOMe) and 11 traditional psychoactive substances and their metabolites (zolpidem phenyl-4-COOH, ephedrine, ritalinic acid, tramadol, phenmetrazine, phendimetrazine, phentermine, methamphetamine, codeine, morphine, and ketamine). Out of these, N-methyl-2-AI, zolpidem phenyl-4-COOH, ephedrine, ritalinic acid, tramadol, phenmetrazine, and phendimetrazine were detected with a detection frequency of over 50 %. Primarily, N-methyl-2-Al was detected in all the wastewater samples. Additionally, four NPSs (amphetamine-N-propyl, benzydamine, isoethcathinone, methoxyphenamine) were tentatively identified at level 2b in a suspect screening analysis. This is the most comprehensive study to investigate NPS using target and suspect analysis methods at the national level. This study raises a need for continuous monitoring of NPS in South Korea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heon-Jun Lee
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Jeong-Eun Oh
- Institute for Environmental and Energy, Pusan National University, Busan, Republic of Korea; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan, Republic of Korea.
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De Felice B, Parolini M. Exposure to 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) induced biochemical but not behavioral effects in Daphnia magna. Environ Toxicol Pharmacol 2023; 100:104163. [PMID: 37257268 DOI: 10.1016/j.etap.2023.104163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Revised: 05/23/2023] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Among amphetamine like stimulants (ATS), the 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) is often detected in sewage and surface waters, representing a potential threat for organisms because of its peculiar mechanism of action (i.e., stimulatory and hallucinogenic). The present study aimed at investigating biochemical (i.e., oxidative stress and energetic biomarkers) and behavioral (i.e., swimming activity) effects induced by a 21-days exposure to two concentrations (50 ng/L and 500 ng/L) of MDMA towards Daphnia magna. The amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS), the activity of antioxidant (SOD, CAT, GPx) and detoxifying (GST) enzymes and lipid peroxidation were measured as oxidative stress-related endpoints. Total energy content was estimated from the measurement of protein, carbohydrate and lipid content to assess energy reserves. The modulation of swimming activity was assessed as behavioral endpoint. Slight effects of MDMA exposure on oxidative stress responses and energy reserves were observed, while no alterations of the swimming behavior was noted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Beatrice De Felice
- University of Milan, Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Via Celoria 26, I-20133 Milan, Italy.
| | - Marco Parolini
- University of Milan, Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Via Celoria 26, I-20133 Milan, Italy
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Clokey JE, Hawker DW, Verhagen R, Ghorbani Gorji S, Knight ER, Thomas KV, Kaserzon SL. Calibration of a microporous polyethylene tube passive sampler for polar organic compounds in wastewater effluent. Sci Total Environ 2023; 874:162497. [PMID: 36863593 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Revised: 02/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Water resources are vulnerable to contamination from polar organic compounds (POCs) originating from sources such as wastewater effluent. Two configurations of a microporous polyethylene tube (MPT) passive sampler were investigated for the time-integrative detection and quantification of POCs in effluent. One configuration contained the polymeric reversed phase sorbent Strata-X (SX) and the other Strata-X suspended in agarose gel (SX-Gel). These were deployed for up to 29 days and analysed for forty-nine POCs including pesticides, pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) together with illicit drugs. Complementary composite samples were collected on days 6, 12, 20 and 26 representing the previous 24 h. Thirty-eight contaminants were detected in composite samples and MPT extracts, with MPT sampling rates (Rs) for 11 pesticides and 9 PPCPs/drugs ranging from 0.81 to 10.32 mL d-1 in SX and 1.35-32.83 mL d-1 in SX-Gel. Half-times to equilibrium of contaminants with the SX and SX-Gel equipped samplers ranged from two days to >29 days. MPT (SX) samplers were also deployed at 10 wastewater treatment effluent discharge sites across Australia for 7 days (again with complementary composite samples), to validate the sampler performance under varying conditions. Extracts from these MPTs detected 48 contaminants in comparison with 46 in composite samples, with concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 138 ng mL-1. An advantage of the MPT was preconcentration of contaminants, resulting in extract levels often markedly above instrument analytical detection limits. The validation study demonstrated a high correlation between accumulated contaminant mass in the MPTs and wastewater concentrations from composite samples (r2 > 0.70, where concentrations in composite samples were > 3× LOD). The MPT sampler shows promise as a sensitive tool for detecting POCs at trace levels in wastewater effluent and also quantifying these levels if temporal concentration variations are not significant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph E Clokey
- The University of Queensland, Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia.
| | - Darryl W Hawker
- Griffith University, School of Environment and Science, 170 Kessels Road, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia
| | - Rory Verhagen
- The University of Queensland, Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Sara Ghorbani Gorji
- The University of Queensland, Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Emma R Knight
- The University of Queensland, Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Kevin V Thomas
- The University of Queensland, Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Sarit L Kaserzon
- The University of Queensland, Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
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Shabani M, Jamali Z, Bayrami D, Salimi A. Vanillic acid alleviates methamphetamine-induced mitochondrial toxicity in cardiac mitochondria via antioxidant activity and inhibition of MPT Pore opening: an in-vitro study. BMC Pharmacol Toxicol 2023; 24:33. [PMID: 37208773 DOI: 10.1186/s40360-023-00676-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/21/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Methamphetamine is widely abused in all parts of the world. It has been reported that short-term and long-term methamphetamine exposure could damage the dopaminergic system and induce cardiomyopathy and cardiotoxicity via mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress. Vanillic acid (VA), a phenolic acid compound derived from plants, is known for its antioxidant and mitochondrial protection properties. METHODS In the current study we used VA for attenuating of Methamphetamine-induced mitochondrial toxicity in cardiac mitochondria. Isolated mitochondria obtained from rat heart were grouped as: control, methamphetamine (250 µM), VA (10, 50 and 100 µM) was cotreated with methamphetamine (250 µM) and VA (100 µM) alone. After 60 min, mitochondrial fraction including: succinate dehydrogenases (SDH) activity, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), mitochondrial swelling, mitochondrial glutathione (GSH), reactive oxygen species (ROS) and lipid peroxidation (LPO) were evaluated. RESULTS Methamphetamine exposure significantly disrupted mitochondrial function and induced ROS formation, lipid peroxidation, GSH depletion, MMP collapse and mitochondrial swelling, while VA significantly increased SDH activity as indicator of mitochondrial toxicity and dysfunction. VA also significantly decreased ROS formation, lipid peroxidation, mitochondrial swelling, MMP collapse and depletion of GSH in cardiac mitochondria in the presence of methamphetamine. CONCLUSION These findings suggested that VA is able to reduce methamphetamine-induced mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress. Our results demonstrate that VA could potentially serve as a promising and accessible cardioprotective agent against methamphetamine-induced cardiotoxicity, via antioxidant and mitochondrial protection properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Shabani
- Students Research Committee, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
- Traditional Medicine and Hydrotherapy Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
| | - Zhaleh Jamali
- Department of Addiction Studies, School of Medicine, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran
- Student Research Committee, School of Medicine, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran
| | - Deniz Bayrami
- Students Research Committee, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
| | - Ahmad Salimi
- Traditional Medicine and Hydrotherapy Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran.
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran.
- Toxicology and Pharmacology School of Pharmacy, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, P.O. Box: 56189-53141, Ardabil, Iran.
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Hughes LRJ, Allen C, Devilly GJ. Preloading with drugs before entry to the nighttime entertainment district: presentation, intoxication rates, and effects of police presence during assessment. Harm Reduct J 2023; 20:62. [PMID: 37131203 PMCID: PMC10152730 DOI: 10.1186/s12954-023-00749-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Past research has either focused on alcohol or drug preloading before a night out, but not on the interaction between them. With increased risks of harm through interaction effects, we wished to build upon previous research in this area. We sought to determine who drug preloads, why do people engage in this practice, what drug/s are people using, and how inebriated they are as they enter the NED. Additionally, we examined what impact varying levels of police presence has on the collections of sensitive data in this context. METHODS We captured estimates of drug and alcohol preloading from 4723 people entering nighttime entertainment districts (NEDs) in Queensland, Australia. Data collection occurred under three varying conditions of police presence (i.e., no police present, police present but not engaging with participants, and police engaging with participants). RESULTS People who admitted to preloading drugs were found to be younger in age than non-drug admitters, more likely to be male than female, use one type of drug (mostly stimulants) rather than multiple (if we exclude alcohol), significantly more intoxicated upon arrival, and more subjectively affected from their use of alcohol and drugs as Breath Approximated Alcohol Concertation levels increased. People were more likely to admit having used drugs in the absence of police, but this had only a small effect. CONCLUSIONS People who drug preload are a vulnerable subset of the youth population that is susceptible to experiencing harms in this context. As they drink more alcohol, they experience higher affects than those who do not report to also take drugs. Police engagement through service rather than force may mitigate some risks. Further enquiry is needed to better understand those who engage in this practice and to have quick, cheap, objective tests of what drugs these people are using.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lee R J Hughes
- School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Mt Gravatt, QLD, 4122, Australia
| | - Corey Allen
- Griffith Criminology Institute, Mt Gravatt, QLD, Australia
- Queensland Police Service Academy, Queensland Police Service, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Grant J Devilly
- School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Mt Gravatt, QLD, 4122, Australia.
- Griffith Criminology Institute, Mt Gravatt, QLD, Australia.
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Bade R, Rousis N, Adhikari S, Baduel C, Bijlsma L, Bizani E, Boogaerts T, Burgard DA, Castiglioni S, Chappell A, Covaci A, Driver EM, Sodre FF, Fatta-Kassinos D, Galani A, Gerber C, Gracia-Lor E, Gracia-Marín E, Halden RU, Heath E, Hernandez F, Jaunay E, Lai FY, Lee HJ, Laimou-Geraniou M, Oh JE, Olafsdottir K, Phung K, Castro MP, Psichoudaki M, Shao X, Salgueiro-Gonzalez N, Feitosa RS, Gomes CS, Subedi B, Löve ASC, Thomaidis N, Tran D, van Nuijs A, Verovšek T, Wang D, White JM, Yargeau V, Zuccato E, Mueller JF. Three years of wastewater surveillance for new psychoactive substances from 16 countries. Water Res X 2023; 19:100179. [PMID: 37143710 PMCID: PMC10151418 DOI: 10.1016/j.wroa.2023.100179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
The proliferation of new psychoactive substances (NPS) over recent years has made their surveillance complex. The analysis of raw municipal influent wastewater can allow a broader insight into community consumption patterns of NPS. This study examines data from an international wastewater surveillance program that collected and analysed influent wastewater samples from up to 47 sites in 16 countries between 2019 and 2022. Influent wastewater samples were collected over the New Year period and analysed using validated liquid chromatography - mass spectrometry methods. Over the three years, a total of 18 NPS were found in at least one site. Synthetic cathinones were the most found class followed by phenethylamines and designer benzodiazepines. Furthermore, two ketamine analogues, one plant based NPS (mitragynine) and methiopropamine were also quantified across the three years. This work demonstrates that NPS are used across different continents and countries with the use of some more evident in particular regions. For example, mitragynine has highest mass loads in sites in the United States, while eutylone and 3-methylmethcathinone increased considerably in New Zealand and in several European countries, respectively. Moreover, 2F-deschloroketamine, an analogue of ketamine, has emerged more recently and could be quantified in several sites, including one in China, where it is considered as one of the drugs of most concern. Finally, some NPS were detected in specific regions during the initial sampling campaigns and spread to additional sites by the third campaign. Hence, wastewater surveillance can provide an insight into temporal and spatial trends of NPS use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Bade
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Nikolaos Rousis
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
| | - Sangeet Adhikari
- School of Sustainable Engineering and Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85281, United States
- Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, United States
| | - Christine Baduel
- Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IRD, Grenoble INP, IGE, Grenoble, France
| | - Lubertus Bijlsma
- Environmental and Public Health Analytical Chemistry, Research Institute for Pesticides and Water, University Jaume I, Avda, Sos Baynat s/n, E-12071 Castellón, Spain
| | - Erasmia Bizani
- Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis Zografou, 15771 Athens, Greece
| | - Tim Boogaerts
- Toxicological Centre, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Daniel A. Burgard
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA 98416, United States
| | - Sara Castiglioni
- Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156, Milan, Italy
| | - Andrew Chappell
- Institute of Environmental Science and Research Limited (ESR), Christchurch Science Centre: 27 Creyke Road, Ilam, Christchurch 8041, New Zealand
| | - Adrian Covaci
- Toxicological Centre, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Erin M. Driver
- Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, United States
- AquaVitas, LLC, Scottsdale, Arizona, 85251, United States
| | | | - Despo Fatta-Kassinos
- Nireas-International Water Research Centre and Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 20537, 1678, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Aikaterini Galani
- Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis Zografou, 15771 Athens, Greece
| | - Cobus Gerber
- Health and Biomedical Innovation, UniSA: Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5001, South Australia, Australia
| | - Emma Gracia-Lor
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Complutense University of Madrid, Avenida Complutense s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain
| | - Elisa Gracia-Marín
- Environmental and Public Health Analytical Chemistry, Research Institute for Pesticides and Water, University Jaume I, Avda, Sos Baynat s/n, E-12071 Castellón, Spain
| | - Rolf U. Halden
- School of Sustainable Engineering and Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85281, United States
- Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, 1001 S. McAllister Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281, United States
- AquaVitas, LLC, Scottsdale, Arizona, 85251, United States
- OneWaterOneHealth, Arizona State University Foundation, 1001 S. McAllister Avenue, Tempe, AZ 85287-8101, United States
| | - Ester Heath
- Jožef Stefan Institute and International Postgraduate School, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Felix Hernandez
- Environmental and Public Health Analytical Chemistry, Research Institute for Pesticides and Water, University Jaume I, Avda, Sos Baynat s/n, E-12071 Castellón, Spain
| | - Emma Jaunay
- Health and Biomedical Innovation, UniSA: Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5001, South Australia, Australia
| | - Foon Yin Lai
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), SE-75007 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Heon-Jun Lee
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pusan National University, Jangjeon-dong, Geumjeong-gu, Busan 46241, Republic of Korea
| | - Maria Laimou-Geraniou
- Jožef Stefan Institute and International Postgraduate School, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Jeong-Eun Oh
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pusan National University, Jangjeon-dong, Geumjeong-gu, Busan 46241, Republic of Korea
| | - Kristin Olafsdottir
- University of Iceland, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Hofsvallagata 53, 107 Reykjavik, Iceland
| | - Kaitlyn Phung
- Institute of Environmental Science and Research Limited (ESR), Christchurch Science Centre: 27 Creyke Road, Ilam, Christchurch 8041, New Zealand
| | - Marco Pineda Castro
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Abbreviation:
| | - Magda Psichoudaki
- Nireas-International Water Research Centre and Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Cyprus, P.O. Box 20537, 1678, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Xueting Shao
- College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, No. 1 Linghai Road, Dalian, 116026, P. R. China
| | - Noelia Salgueiro-Gonzalez
- Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156, Milan, Italy
| | | | | | - Bikram Subedi
- Department of Chemistry, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky 42071-3300, United States
| | - Arndís Sue Ching Löve
- University of Iceland, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Hofsvallagata 53, 107 Reykjavik, Iceland
| | - Nikolaos Thomaidis
- Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis Zografou, 15771 Athens, Greece
| | - Diana Tran
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA 98416, United States
| | - Alexander van Nuijs
- Toxicological Centre, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Taja Verovšek
- Jožef Stefan Institute and International Postgraduate School, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Degao Wang
- College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, No. 1 Linghai Road, Dalian, 116026, P. R. China
| | - Jason M. White
- Health and Biomedical Innovation, UniSA: Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5001, South Australia, Australia
| | - Viviane Yargeau
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Abbreviation:
| | - Ettore Zuccato
- Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156, Milan, Italy
| | - Jochen F. Mueller
- Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), The University of Queensland, 20 Cornwall Street, Woolloongabba, QLD 4102, Australia
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Lin CH, Chen MH, Lin WS, Wu SI, Liao YC, Lin YH. A nationwide study of prenatal exposure to illicit drugs and risk of neurodevelopmental disorders and disruptive behavioral disorders. Asian J Psychiatr 2023; 85:103597. [PMID: 37141844 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajp.2023.103597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 04/20/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
This cohort study aimed to examine the association between prenatal exposure to illicit drugs and neurodevelopmental and disruptive behavioral disorders (DBD) in children aged 7-12 years, using data from four national databases in Taiwan from 2004 to 2016. We linked parental and child IDs from the Taiwan Maternal and Child Health database to track children's health status from birth to at least age 7 and identify those diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disorders. The study included 896,474 primiparous women who gave birth between 2004 and 2009, with 752 pregnant women with illicit drug use history and 7520 matched women without. The results of the study showed that prenatal illicit drug exposure was significantly associated with the development of neurodevelopmental disorders and DBD in offspring. The adjusted hazard ratios for developmental delay, mild-to-severe intellectual disability, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and DBD were 1.54 (95 % CI: 1.21-1.95), 2.63 (95 % CI: 1.64-4.19), 1.58 (95 % CI: 1.23-2.03), and 2.57 (95 % CI: 1.21-5.48), respectively. Furthermore, prenatal exposure to methamphetamine increased the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders and DBD in offspring, while opioid use was significantly associated with a higher risk of three types of neurodevelopmental disorders, but not with DBD. The use of sedative hypnotic drugs alone was not associated with any increased risk of the three types of neurodevelopmental disorders or DBD. However, we found a significant interaction effect between prenatal illicit drug exposure and the use of sedative hypnotic drugs, which increased the risk of developmental delay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ching-Heng Lin
- Department of Medical Research, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; Department of Health Care Management, National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Public Health, College of Medicine, Fu Jen Catholic University, New Taipei City, Taiwan; Department of Industrial Engineering and Enterprise Information, Tunghai University, Taichung, Taiwan; Institute of Public Health and Community Medicine Research Center, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Mu-Hong Chen
- Department of Psychiatry, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Wei-Szu Lin
- Department of Medical Research, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Shiow-Ing Wu
- Institute of Population Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan, Miaoli County, Taiwan
| | - Yuan-Chun Liao
- Division of Controlled Drugs, Taiwan Food and Drug Administration, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Hsuan Lin
- Institute of Population Health Sciences, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan, Miaoli County, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Health Behaviors and Community Sciences, College of Public Health, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.
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43
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Arena Ventura CA, Sordi Carrara B, Da Silva Frazão I, Janis Eugênio S, Guimarães de Ávila Domingos S, Ferreira PS. Prevention of Illicit Drug use from the Users' Perspective. Rev Colomb Psiquiatr (Engl Ed) 2023; 52:93-100. [PMID: 37500240 DOI: 10.1016/j.rcpeng.2021.02.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2020] [Accepted: 02/15/2021] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
This research described the perspective of illicit drug users regarding illicit drug use prevention initiatives. The study used a convergent parallel mixed methods design, combining quantitative and qualitative methods. In the quantitative component of the study, 111 subjects from a psychosocial care centre (CAPS-AD). The qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 11 subjects who were selected from among the participants and who declared themselves to be personally affected as being or having been illicit drugs users. From the perspective of drug users, the results pointed out different prevention initiatives and the institutions that should be responsible for them. For preventive actions to be successful, they must be intersectoral and involve government, community and families.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Bruna Sordi Carrara
- University of Sao Paulo at Ribeirao Preto College of Nursing, Ribeirao Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Samira Janis Eugênio
- University of Sao Paulo at Ribeirao Preto College of Nursing, Ribeirao Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Paulo Sergio Ferreira
- University of Sao Paulo at Ribeirao Preto College of Nursing, Ribeirao Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
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Istvan M, Bresdin V, Mainguy M, Laigo P, Grall-Bronnec M, Eudeline V, Guillet JE, Guillo M, Babonnaud L, Jolliet P, Schreck B, Victorri-Vigneau C. First results of the French OCTOPUS survey among festival attendees: a latent class analysis. Harm Reduct J 2023; 20:43. [PMID: 36991395 PMCID: PMC10057684 DOI: 10.1186/s12954-023-00770-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 03/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/31/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Illicit substance use has constantly evolved over the years, particularly in the party scene. Monitoring these changes is essential to adapt harm reduction strategies. The OCTOPUS survey was implemented to enhance knowledge on drug use at music festivals. The objective of the work presented here was to describe drug use and to characterize profiles of substance use in music festival attendees. METHODS OCTOPUS was a cross-sectional survey carried out during 13 various music festivals (dub, eclectic and electronic music) in the Loire-Atlantique department (France) from July 2017 to July 2018. Participants were festival attendees. Data were collected by trained research staff using a face-to-face structured interview. We analysed the use of illicit drugs in the last 12 months to describe the prevalence of use and to characterize the profile of substance use using a latent class analysis. RESULTS In total, 383 festival attendees were included. Of 314 (82%) participants who reported drug use, the most reported drugs were cannabis, ecstasy/MDMA and cocaine. We identified two profiles of drug use: (i) a "no/low polysubstance use" profile mainly characterized by the use of "classic" stimulants (ecstasy/MDMA, cocaine) and (ii) "moderate/extensive polysubstance use", with high probabilities of "classic" stimulants use and especially other drugs reported: speed, ketamine, new psychoactive substances (NPSs). CONCLUSION We observed frequent polysubstance use in festival attendees. Harm reduction should be targeted at the increased risk of toxicity linked to polysubstance use, and the reduction in harm caused by particular drugs (ketamine, NPS, speed) could be further strengthened.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marion Istvan
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, Centre d'Evaluation et d'Information sur la Pharmacodépendance-Addictovigilance (CEIP-A), Service de Pharmacologie Clinique, F-44000, Nantes, France.
- Nantes Université, Univ Tours, CHU Nantes, CHU Tours, INSERM, MethodS in Patients-centered outcomes and HEalth Research, SPHERE, F-44000, Nantes, France.
| | - Vincent Bresdin
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, Centre d'Evaluation et d'Information sur la Pharmacodépendance-Addictovigilance (CEIP-A), Service de Pharmacologie Clinique, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Marie Mainguy
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, Centre d'Evaluation et d'Information sur la Pharmacodépendance-Addictovigilance (CEIP-A), Service de Pharmacologie Clinique, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Pauline Laigo
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, Centre d'Evaluation et d'Information sur la Pharmacodépendance-Addictovigilance (CEIP-A), Service de Pharmacologie Clinique, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Marie Grall-Bronnec
- Nantes Université, Univ Tours, CHU Nantes, CHU Tours, INSERM, MethodS in Patients-centered outcomes and HEalth Research, SPHERE, F-44000, Nantes, France
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, UIC Psychiatrie et Santé Mentale, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Vincent Eudeline
- OPPELIA, Association de Prévention et de Soin en Addictologie, Nantes et St Nazaire, France
| | - Jean-Emmanuel Guillet
- OPPELIA, Association de Prévention et de Soin en Addictologie, Nantes et St Nazaire, France
| | - Manon Guillo
- Techno + Nantes, Association de Santé Communautaire en Milieu Techno, Nantes, France
| | - Laurent Babonnaud
- AIDES Nantes, association de soutien et accompagnement des personnes, Actions de prévention et de réduction des risques du VIH/SIDA et des hépatites, Nantes, France
| | - Pascale Jolliet
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, Centre d'Evaluation et d'Information sur la Pharmacodépendance-Addictovigilance (CEIP-A), Service de Pharmacologie Clinique, F-44000, Nantes, France
- Nantes Université, Univ Tours, CHU Nantes, CHU Tours, INSERM, MethodS in Patients-centered outcomes and HEalth Research, SPHERE, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Benoit Schreck
- Nantes Université, Univ Tours, CHU Nantes, CHU Tours, INSERM, MethodS in Patients-centered outcomes and HEalth Research, SPHERE, F-44000, Nantes, France
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, UIC Psychiatrie et Santé Mentale, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Caroline Victorri-Vigneau
- Nantes Université, CHU Nantes, Centre d'Evaluation et d'Information sur la Pharmacodépendance-Addictovigilance (CEIP-A), Service de Pharmacologie Clinique, F-44000, Nantes, France
- Nantes Université, Univ Tours, CHU Nantes, CHU Tours, INSERM, MethodS in Patients-centered outcomes and HEalth Research, SPHERE, F-44000, Nantes, France
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45
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de Oliveira AFB, de Melo Vieira A, Santos JM. Trends and challenges in analytical chemistry for multi-analysis of illicit drugs employing wastewater-based epidemiology. Anal Bioanal Chem 2023:10.1007/s00216-023-04644-4. [PMID: 36952026 PMCID: PMC10034891 DOI: 10.1007/s00216-023-04644-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 03/04/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) for quantification of illicit drug biomarkers (IDBs) in wastewater samples is an effective tool that can provide information about drug consumption. The most commonly quantified IDBs belong to different chemical classes, including cocaine, amphetamine-type stimulants, opioids, and cannabinoids, so the different chemical properties of these molecules pose a challenge in the development of analytical methods for multi-analyte analysis. Recent workflows include the steps of sampling and storage, sample preparation using solid-phase extraction (SPE) or without extraction, and quantification of analytes employing gas or liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The greatest difficulty is due to the fact that wastewater samples are complex chemical mixtures containing analytes with different chemical properties, often present at low concentrations. Therefore, in the development of analytical methods, there is the need to simplify and optimize the analytical workflows, reducing associated uncertainties, analysis times, and costs. The present work provides a critical bibliographic survey of studies published from the year 2020 until now, highlighting the challenges and trends of published analytical workflows for the multi-analysis of IDBs in wastewater samples, considering sampling and sample preparation, method validation, and analytical techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Flávia Barbosa de Oliveira
- Petroleum, Energy and Mass Spectrometry Research Group (PEM), Chemistry Department, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Recife, PE, 52171-900, Brazil
| | - Aline de Melo Vieira
- Petroleum, Energy and Mass Spectrometry Research Group (PEM), Chemistry Department, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Recife, PE, 52171-900, Brazil
| | - Jandyson Machado Santos
- Petroleum, Energy and Mass Spectrometry Research Group (PEM), Chemistry Department, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Recife, PE, 52171-900, Brazil.
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Gjerde H, Bretteville-Jensen AL, Bache-Andreassen L, Hanoa K, Furuhaugen H, Brochmann GW, Vindenes V. Which illicit drugs are injected in Oslo? A study based on analysis of drug residues in used injection equipment and self-reported information. Scand J Public Health 2023; 51:21-27. [PMID: 34538164 PMCID: PMC9900188 DOI: 10.1177/14034948211043984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND People who inject drugs (PWID) have a high risk of premature death due to fatal overdoses. Newly emerged fentanyls, much more potent than heroin and other opioids, may increase this risk further. Therefore, precise information on injected drugs is critical to improving prevention strategies. AIMS This study aimed to analyse drug residues in used injection equipment in order to determine drug and drug combinations and compare and complement findings with self-reported information. METHODS Used syringes and needles (n=766) were collected at the supervised drug consumption facilities, the needle exchange service and two low-threshold health services for problem drug users in Oslo, Norway. The material was collected every third month from June 2019 to June 2020 and analysed for 64 substances using highly specific analytical methods (ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry). Additionally, a street-recruited sample of PWID was interviewed from 2017 to 2019 regarding their drug injection habits (n=572). RESULTS Heroin (65.5%) or amphetamines (59.8%), often in combination (30.5%), were commonly detected in drug residues. Other opioids, stimulants or benzodiazepines were rarely detected (6.1%). Fentanyl was detected in only one syringe. Heroin was the most reported drug (77.6% during the past four weeks, 48.3% daily/almost daily), followed by amphetamines (57.5% during the past four weeks, 23.1% daily or almost daily). Injection of methadone, buprenorphine and dissolved tablets was self-reported more frequently than determined in drug residue findings. CONCLUSIONS
Analysis of the injection equipment proved useful as a non-invasive, rapid and accurate means to obtain detailed information on injected drugs in Oslo and supplement traditional PWID survey information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hallvard Gjerde
- Section of Drug Abuse Research,
Department of Forensic Sciences, Oslo University Hospital, Norway,Hallvard Gjerde, Oslo University Hospital,
Department of Forensic Sciences, Section for Drug Abuse Research, P.O. Box 4950
Nydalen, NO-0424 Oslo, Norway. E-mail:
| | | | - Lihn Bache-Andreassen
- Section of Drug Abuse Research,
Department of Forensic Sciences, Oslo University Hospital, Norway
| | - Kristin Hanoa
- Department of Alcohol, Tobacco and
Drugs, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Norway
| | - Håvard Furuhaugen
- Section of Drug Abuse Research,
Department of Forensic Sciences, Oslo University Hospital, Norway
| | - Gerd-Wenche Brochmann
- Section of Drug Abuse Research,
Department of Forensic Sciences, Oslo University Hospital, Norway
| | - Vigdis Vindenes
- Section of Drug Abuse Research,
Department of Forensic Sciences, Oslo University Hospital, Norway,Institute of Clinical Medicine, Faculty
of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway
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47
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Karnecki K, Wrocławski A, Pieśniak D, Dalewski W, Gos T, Kaliszan M. Homicide mechanisms, weapon types and causes of death in the autopsy material of the Department of Forensic Medicine Medical University of Gdańsk Poland in the years 2010-2019. J Forensic Leg Med 2023; 94:102481. [PMID: 36592486 DOI: 10.1016/j.jflm.2022.102481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The study objective was the analysis of homicides based on reports of 107 medicolegal autopsies of victims, which were carried out in 2010-2019 at the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Medical University of Gdańsk, Poland. The study focused on the analysis of homicide mechanisms, on the weapon type, injuries characteristics, and both pathomechanisms and causes of death. Alcohol and illicit drugs abuse, which is a predisposing factor, was also assessed. In the analysed cohort, 70.1% were males and 29.9% females. The most frequently used weapon was a blunt instrument (accounting for 47.7% of homicides), while the least common was a firearm (accounting for 4.7% of homicides). There were significant differences in homicide mechanisms related to victims' gender. In males, blunt or sharp instruments predominated, while in females violent suffocation and chop injuries were more frequent. Fatal head injuries and their consequences predominated in the pathomechanisms of death (32.7% of cases). It was shown that the highest blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was found in homicides due to violent strangulation and sharp instrument use, while the lowest BAC was found in gunshot victims. Toxicological tests were performed in 18 cases and in 7 cases showed positive results for illicit drugs. The analysis of various elements involved in homicide may contribute to a conceptual framework for preventive measures aiming at the reduction of homicides number.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karol Karnecki
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Gdańsk, 23 Dębowa St., 80-204, Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Adrian Wrocławski
- Department of Material Criminal Law and Criminology, University of Gdańsk, 16 Jana Bażyńskiego St., 80-952, Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Dorota Pieśniak
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Gdańsk, 23 Dębowa St., 80-204, Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Wojciech Dalewski
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Gdańsk, 23 Dębowa St., 80-204, Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Tomasz Gos
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Gdańsk, 23 Dębowa St., 80-204, Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Michał Kaliszan
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Gdańsk, 23 Dębowa St., 80-204, Gdańsk, Poland.
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48
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Oster E, Čudina N, Pavasović H, Prevendar Crnić A, Božić F, Fadel C, Giorgi M. Intoxication of dogs and cats with common stimulating, hallucinogenic and dissociative recreational drugs. Vet Anim Sci 2023; 19:100288. [PMID: 36798946 PMCID: PMC9926018 DOI: 10.1016/j.vas.2023.100288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Pets can have accidental, intentional, or malicious exposure to illicit drugs. It is a growing concern over the last decade because there is an increase in usage of illicit drugs in humans and diagnosis is difficult. Owners are often not aware of exposure, or they are reluctant to admit possession of recreational drugs in the household due to potential legal consequences. In addition, illicit drugs sold on the black market are often adulterated with other substances resulting in non-specific clinical presentation and aggravation of symptoms. There are affordable onsite diagnostic tests on the market which could facilitate diagnosis of intoxication with illicit drugs, but they give a lot of false positive results due to low specificity of the tests. In this paper we gathered information about the most common recreational drugs such as amphetamines, methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA), phencyclidine (PCP), lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocybin mushrooms and cocaine in terms of toxicokinetic properties, mechanism of toxic action, clinical presentation and treatment in dogs and cats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ena Oster
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Nikola Čudina
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Hrvoje Pavasović
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Andreja Prevendar Crnić
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Frane Božić
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Charbel Fadel
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Sassari, Italy
| | - Mario Giorgi
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Italy,Corresponding author at: Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
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49
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Oertel R, Schubert S, Helm B, Mayer R, Dumke R, El-Armouche A, Renner B. Drug consumption in German cities and municipalities during the COVID-19 lockdown: a wastewater analysis. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol 2023;:1-14. [PMID: 36633617 DOI: 10.1007/s00210-022-02377-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/28/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Analysis of illicit drugs, medicines, and pathogens in wastewater is a powerful tool for epidemiological studies to monitor public health trends. The aims of this study were to (i) assess spatial and temporal trends of population-normalized mass loads of illicit drugs and nicotine in raw wastewater in the time of regulations against SARS-CoV-2 infections (2020-21) and (ii) find substances that are feasible markers for characterizing the occurrence of selected drugs in wastewater. Raw sewage 24-h composite samples were collected in catchment areas of 15 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in urban, small-town, and rural areas in Germany during different lockdown phases from April 2020 to December 2021. Parent substances (amphetamine, methamphetamine, MDMA, carbamazepine, gabapentin, and metoprolol) and the metabolites of cocaine (benzoylecgonine) and nicotine (cotinine) were measured. The daily discharge of WWTP influents were used to calculate the daily load (mg/day) normalized by population equivalents (PE) in drained catchment areas (in mg/1,000 persons/day). A weekend trend for illicit drugs was visible with higher amounts on Saturdays and Sundays in larger WWTPs. An influence of the regulations to reduce SARS-CoV-2 infections such as contact bans and border closures on drug consumption has been proven in some cases and refuted in several. In addition, metoprolol and cotinine were found to be suitable as marker substances for the characterization of wastewater. A change in drug use was visible at the beginning of the SARS-CoV-2 crisis. Thereafter from mid-2020, no obvious effect was detected with regard to the regulations against SARS-CoV-2 infections on concentration of drugs in wastewater. Wastewater-based epidemiology is suitable for showing changes in drug consumption during the COVID-19 lockdown.
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50
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Pal A, Kaswan K, Barman SR, Lin YZ, Chung JH, Sharma MK, Liu KL, Chen BH, Wu CC, Lee S, Choi D, Lin ZH. Microfluidic nanodevices for drug sensing and screening applications. Biosens Bioelectron 2023; 219:114783. [PMID: 36257116 PMCID: PMC9533638 DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2022.114783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2022] [Revised: 09/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The outbreak of pandemics (e.g., severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2 in 2019), influenza A viruses (H1N1 in 2009), etc.), and worldwide spike in the aging population have created unprecedented urgency for developing new drugs to improve disease treatment. As a result, extensive efforts have been made to design novel techniques for efficient drug monitoring and screening, which form the backbone of drug development. Compared to traditional techniques, microfluidics-based platforms have emerged as promising alternatives for high-throughput drug screening due to their inherent miniaturization characteristics, low sample consumption, integration, and compatibility with diverse analytical strategies. Moreover, the microfluidic-based models utilizing human cells to produce in-vitro biomimetics of the human body pave new ways to predict more accurate drug effects in humans. This review provides a comprehensive summary of different microfluidics-based drug sensing and screening strategies and briefly discusses their advantages. Most importantly, an in-depth outlook of the commonly used detection techniques integrated with microfluidic chips for highly sensitive drug screening is provided. Then, the influence of critical parameters such as sensing materials and microfluidic platform geometries on screening performance is summarized. This review also outlines the recent applications of microfluidic approaches for screening therapeutic and illicit drugs. Moreover, the current challenges and the future perspective of this research field is elaborately highlighted, which we believe will contribute immensely towards significant achievements in all aspects of drug development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnab Pal
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; International Intercollegiate PhD Program, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Kuldeep Kaswan
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; International Intercollegiate PhD Program, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Snigdha Roy Barman
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; International Intercollegiate PhD Program, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Zih Lin
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Jun-Hsuan Chung
- Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Manish Kumar Sharma
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Kuei-Lin Liu
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
| | - Bo-Huan Chen
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; International Intercollegiate PhD Program, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Linkou Medical Center, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan
| | - Chih-Cheng Wu
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; Center of Quality Management, National Taiwan University Hospital, Hsinchu Branch, Hsinchu, 30059, Taiwan; College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 10051, Taiwan; Institute of Cellular and System Medicine, National Health Research Institute, Zhunan, 35053, Taiwan
| | - Sangmin Lee
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Chung-Ang University, Seoul, 06974, South Korea.
| | - Dongwhi Choi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering (Integrated Engineering Program), Kyung Hee University, Gyeonggi, 17104, South Korea.
| | - Zong-Hong Lin
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; International Intercollegiate PhD Program, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; Department of Chemistry, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; Frontier Research Center on Fundamental and Applied Sciences of Matters, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan; Department of Mechanical Engineering (Integrated Engineering Program), Kyung Hee University, Gyeonggi, 17104, South Korea.
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