Kaitlyn B. PalmquistDissertation DefenseCollege of Criminal JusticeDepartment of Forensic ScienceDoctor of Philosophy, Forensic Science

Committee MembersMadeleine Swortwood, PhDSarah Kerrigan, PhDJorn Yu, PhDMarta Conchiero-Guisan, PhD

Development and Application of Analytical Methods forFentanyl Analogs in Traditional and Alternative Matrices

PUBLIC DEFENSE ANNOUNCEMENT

Event InformationJune 18th, 202110:00 am CSTCFS 231https://shsu.zoom.us/j/86714002885

Over the last decade, the United States has experienced increasing numbers of overdose deaths attributed to opioid abuse. While the opioid crisis originated with prescription opioids, recent impacts are credited to synthetic novel psychoactive substances (NPS). Synthetic opioids, a category of NPS, can be divided into two categories: fentanyl- and non-fentanyl derivatives. Fentanyl analogs, the focus of this research, not only pose a significant threat to public safety, but also challenges to forensic laboratories due to their high potency, low concentrations, similar molecular structures, and progressive prevalence. To address detection issues faced by forensic toxicologists, it is necessary to develop highly sensitive analytical methods for detecting fentanyl analogs in traditional and alternative biological matrices. The goals of this study were to 1) develop and validate a data-independent screening method for fentanyl analogs in whole blood and oral fluid for application to postmortem specimens and antemortem oral fluid collected from detainees, respectively; 2) develop and validate a quantitative method for furanyl fentanyl and its metabolites in human and rat plasma for future pharmacological assessment; 3) develop and validate a quantitative method for prevalent fentanyl analogs in whole blood and perform a long-term stability study; and 4) develop and validate a quantitative method for fentanyl analogs in oral fluid for application to antemortem oral fluid samples collected from probationers/parolees.