TY - JOUR
T1 - Application of modified QuEChERS method to liver samples for forensic toxicological analysis
AU - Usui, Kiyotaka
AU - Hashiyada, Masaki
AU - Hayashizaki, Yoshie
AU - Igari, Yui
AU - Hosoya, Tadashi
AU - Sakai, Jun
AU - Funayama, Masato
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments This work was supported in part by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) 24790637.
PY - 2014/1
Y1 - 2014/1
N2 - In forensic toxicological analysis, liver is commonly used as an alternative biological specimen in cases in which blood and urine cannot be obtained. Liver samples are generally purified by a solid-phase extraction (SPE) technique after homogenization. The homogenizer probe cleaning process is laborious and has a risk of cross-contamination, and the SPE technique itself is tedious and time consuming. The QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, Safe) method is widely acknowledged in some fields, such as food analysis, as a simple, fast, and reliable method. We previously developed a modified QuEChERS method for forensic toxicological analysis in human whole blood and urine. In this study, we applied this method to liver samples from forensic cases and successfully detected not only targeted drugs (i.e., benzodiazepines, zopiclone, and zolpidem) but also various types of drugs. This method has no risk of cross-contamination because homogenization of the liver and extraction of the drugs are simultaneously performed in a disposable plastic tube. In addition, the total process time is approximately 5 min. We recommend the modified QuEChERS method for extraction of drugs from both fluid and solid samples, such as liver, in forensic cases.
AB - In forensic toxicological analysis, liver is commonly used as an alternative biological specimen in cases in which blood and urine cannot be obtained. Liver samples are generally purified by a solid-phase extraction (SPE) technique after homogenization. The homogenizer probe cleaning process is laborious and has a risk of cross-contamination, and the SPE technique itself is tedious and time consuming. The QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, Safe) method is widely acknowledged in some fields, such as food analysis, as a simple, fast, and reliable method. We previously developed a modified QuEChERS method for forensic toxicological analysis in human whole blood and urine. In this study, we applied this method to liver samples from forensic cases and successfully detected not only targeted drugs (i.e., benzodiazepines, zopiclone, and zolpidem) but also various types of drugs. This method has no risk of cross-contamination because homogenization of the liver and extraction of the drugs are simultaneously performed in a disposable plastic tube. In addition, the total process time is approximately 5 min. We recommend the modified QuEChERS method for extraction of drugs from both fluid and solid samples, such as liver, in forensic cases.
KW - Benzodiazepines
KW - LC-MS/MS
KW - Liver specimen
KW - QuEChERS
KW - Solid tissue analysis
KW - Zopiclone
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U2 - 10.1007/s11419-013-0199-0
DO - 10.1007/s11419-013-0199-0
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84895162287
VL - 32
SP - 139
EP - 147
JO - Forensic Toxicology
JF - Forensic Toxicology
SN - 1860-8965
IS - 1
ER -