TY - JOUR AB - Safrole, the main compound in the essential oil of several plants of the Laurel family (Lauraceae), and its secondary product piperonylmethylketone are the predominantly used precursors for the illicit synthesis of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) which is, in turn, the most common active ingredient in Ecstasy tablets. Analytical methods with adequate capacity to identify links and origin of precursors, such as safrole, provide valuable information for drug-related police intelligence. Authentic sassafras oil samples from police seizures were subjected to comparative analysis based on their chemical profiles obtained by comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC x GC-TOFMS). The enhanced separation power and increased sensitivity of GC x GC allowed for the detection of minor compounds present in the essential oils which were of particular interest in case of very pure samples whose impurity profiles were not very pronounced. Discrimination of such samples was still possible even in the absence of characteristic main compounds. AU - Schäffer, M. AU - Gröger, T. AU - Pütz, M.* AU - Zimmermann, R. C1 - 25127 C2 - 31822 SP - 108-115 TI - Forensic profiling of sassafras oils based on comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography. JO - Forensic Sci. Int. VL - 229 IS - 1-3 PB - Elsevier Ireland PY - 2013 SN - 0379-0738 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The most common clandestine manufacturing procedure for the ecstasy derivative 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), is the reductive amination of piperonylmethylketone (PMK) via platinum(IV) oxide/hydrogen. Deviations of the reaction conditions during the synthesis may result in different chemical profiles of the products. The chemical analysis of these profiles is an important objective for forensic drug intelligence. In this work we studied the impact of a systematic variation of the hydrogenation time, the reaction temperature and the precursor batch on the resulting organic chemical profiles of the MDMA bases and MDMA hydrochlorides. Target analysis was based on a gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method which was harmonized during the European project CHAMP.22Collaborative Harmonisation of Methods for Profiling of Amphetamine Type Stimulants. In addition, samples were analyzed by comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC. ×. GC-TOFMS) and subjected to non-targeted data analysis for a comprehensive analysis of the complete profiles. The reaction temperature, followed by the used precursor batch, revealed the highest impact on the chemical profile. The effect on individual impurity compounds is discussed in detail. With respect to the interpretation of the data, the profiles were compared to the profiles of MDMA samples obtained by reductive amination using sodium borohydride ("cold method") and aluminium/mercury amalgam as alternative reducing agents. Non-targeted analysis revealed that the discrimination according to the synthetic route and the batch of precursor used for the synthesis strongly depends on the selected target compounds. AU - Schäffer, M. AU - Dieckmann, S.* AU - Pütz, M.* AU - Kohles, T.* AU - Pyell, U.* AU - Zimmermann, R. C1 - 27943 C2 - 32870 SP - 201-211 TI - Impact of reaction parameters on the chemical profile of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine synthesized via reductive amination: Target analysis based on GC-qMS compared to non-targeted analysis based on GC×GC-TOF-MS. JO - Forensic Sci. Int. VL - 223 IS - 1-3 PB - Elsevier Ireland PY - 2013 SN - 0379-0738 ER - TY - JOUR AB - We present a new tool for the estimation of the age of bloodstains, which could probably be used during forensic casework. For this, we used atomic force microscopy (AFM) for high-resolution imaging of erythrocytes in a blood sample and the detection of elasticity changes on a nanometer scale. For the analytic procedure we applied a fresh blood spot on a glass slide and started the AFM detection after drying of the blood drop. In a first step, an overview image was generated showing the presence of several red blood cells, which could easily be detected due to their typical "doughnut-like" appearance. The consecutively morphological investigations in a timeframe of 4 weeks could not show any alterations. Secondly, AFM was used to test the elasticity by recording force-distance curves. The measurements were performed immediately after drying, 1.5 h, 30 h and 31 days. The conditions were kept constant at room temperature (20 degrees C) and a humidity of 30%. The obtained elasticity parameters were plotted against a timeline and repeated several times. The elasticity pattern showed a decrease over time, which are most probably influenced by the alteration of the blood spot during the drying and coagulation process. The preliminary data demonstrates the capacity of this method to use it for development of calibration curves, which can be used for estimation of bloodstain ages during forensic investigations. AU - Strasser, S.* AU - Zink, A.* AU - Kada, G.* AU - Hinterdorfer, P.* AU - Peschel, O.* AU - Heckl, W.M.* AU - Nerlich, A.G. AU - Thalhammer, S. C1 - 2719 C2 - 24988 SP - 8-14 TI - Age determination of blood spots in forensic medicine by force spectroscopy. JO - Forensic Sci. Int. VL - 170 IS - 1 PB - Elsevier Science PY - 2007 SN - 0379-0738 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Analysis of Cannabis sativa L. grown 1300 meters above sea level shows that the amount of propyl cannabinoids is higher than the respective pentyl homologues. High percentages of pentyl and propyl cannabichromenes were produced under these growing conditions. AU - Mobarak, Z.M. AU - Bieniek, D. AU - Korte, F. C1 - 41606 C2 - 35696 SP - 189-193 TI - Some chromatographic aspects of hashish analysis. II. JO - Forensic Sci. Int. VL - 11 IS - 1 PY - 1978 SN - 0379-0738 ER -