Fatimah M Alamri, Sultan K Alshmmari, Monerah A Altamimy, Ibrahim A Al Othaim, Yahya M Alshehri, Rayed M Alafraa, Ahmed D Almalki, Turki A Alkhalifah, Taher Sahlabji, Abubakr M Idris, Haitham Al-Hamoud, Yahya F Jamous, Fahad S Aldawasri
{"title":"调查从沙特阿拉伯检获的样本中含有非法普瑞巴林。","authors":"Fatimah M Alamri, Sultan K Alshmmari, Monerah A Altamimy, Ibrahim A Al Othaim, Yahya M Alshehri, Rayed M Alafraa, Ahmed D Almalki, Turki A Alkhalifah, Taher Sahlabji, Abubakr M Idris, Haitham Al-Hamoud, Yahya F Jamous, Fahad S Aldawasri","doi":"10.3389/fchem.2025.1594567","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Pregabalin (PGL) is a medication that is prescribed for controlling specific neurological-related symptoms. Due to its abuse in multiple countries, PGL has been classified as a controlled substance by authorities, including the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study developed a validated ultra-performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array detector (UPLC-PDA) method to quantify PGL in 40 seized samples (35 capsules, 5 powders). A complementary liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was used to detect potential adulterants.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The UPLC-PDA method demonstrated linearity (r = 0.9973) for PGL quantification (0.50-3.00 mg/mL), with an accuracy of 96%-102%. The RSD% values were 0.63% and 1.03% for intra-day and inter-day precision, respectively. Analysis of the five powder samples revealed a relative inconsistency in PGL content (107.91%-114.55%). Moreover, it showed higher variability in PGL content (RSD 1.16%-5.30%), suggesting possible adulteration or poor manufacturing. Furthermore, the results of the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) showed an acceptable purity for the powder samples. On the other hand, among 35 capsules, 5 (14.29%) exceeded pharmacopeial limits (95%-105% PGL content), while 6 (17.14%) contained <95% PGL.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>These results demonstrate significant variability in PGL content and the presence of adulterants, underscoring the need for robust analytical methods in forensic chemistry. Furthermore, the LC-MS/MS method detected adulteration of PGL with codeine, paracetamol, and gabapentin in 2.9% of the analyzed capsules, suggesting custom mixing by perpetrators. In general, 31.43% of these samples failed to meet quality standards and contained substances beyond declared contents that posed toxicity risks, revealing inadequacies in illicit drug production and circulation. The UPLC-PDA method offers a rapid, validated approach for PGL quantification, while LC-MS/MS enhances adulterant detection, supporting forensic and quality control applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":12421,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Chemistry","volume":"13 ","pages":"1594567"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12326260/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":"{\"title\":\"Investigation of illicit pregabalin in seized samples from Saudi Arabia.\",\"authors\":\"Fatimah M Alamri, Sultan K Alshmmari, Monerah A Altamimy, Ibrahim A Al Othaim, Yahya M Alshehri, Rayed M Alafraa, Ahmed D Almalki, Turki A Alkhalifah, Taher Sahlabji, Abubakr M Idris, Haitham Al-Hamoud, Yahya F Jamous, Fahad S Aldawasri\",\"doi\":\"10.3389/fchem.2025.1594567\",\"DOIUrl\":null,\"url\":null,\"abstract\":\"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Pregabalin (PGL) is a medication that is prescribed for controlling specific neurological-related symptoms. Due to its abuse in multiple countries, PGL has been classified as a controlled substance by authorities, including the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study developed a validated ultra-performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array detector (UPLC-PDA) method to quantify PGL in 40 seized samples (35 capsules, 5 powders). A complementary liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was used to detect potential adulterants.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The UPLC-PDA method demonstrated linearity (r = 0.9973) for PGL quantification (0.50-3.00 mg/mL), with an accuracy of 96%-102%. The RSD% values were 0.63% and 1.03% for intra-day and inter-day precision, respectively. Analysis of the five powder samples revealed a relative inconsistency in PGL content (107.91%-114.55%). Moreover, it showed higher variability in PGL content (RSD 1.16%-5.30%), suggesting possible adulteration or poor manufacturing. Furthermore, the results of the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) showed an acceptable purity for the powder samples. On the other hand, among 35 capsules, 5 (14.29%) exceeded pharmacopeial limits (95%-105% PGL content), while 6 (17.14%) contained <95% PGL.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>These results demonstrate significant variability in PGL content and the presence of adulterants, underscoring the need for robust analytical methods in forensic chemistry. Furthermore, the LC-MS/MS method detected adulteration of PGL with codeine, paracetamol, and gabapentin in 2.9% of the analyzed capsules, suggesting custom mixing by perpetrators. In general, 31.43% of these samples failed to meet quality standards and contained substances beyond declared contents that posed toxicity risks, revealing inadequacies in illicit drug production and circulation. 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Investigation of illicit pregabalin in seized samples from Saudi Arabia.
Introduction: Pregabalin (PGL) is a medication that is prescribed for controlling specific neurological-related symptoms. Due to its abuse in multiple countries, PGL has been classified as a controlled substance by authorities, including the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA).
Methods: This study developed a validated ultra-performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array detector (UPLC-PDA) method to quantify PGL in 40 seized samples (35 capsules, 5 powders). A complementary liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was used to detect potential adulterants.
Results: The UPLC-PDA method demonstrated linearity (r = 0.9973) for PGL quantification (0.50-3.00 mg/mL), with an accuracy of 96%-102%. The RSD% values were 0.63% and 1.03% for intra-day and inter-day precision, respectively. Analysis of the five powder samples revealed a relative inconsistency in PGL content (107.91%-114.55%). Moreover, it showed higher variability in PGL content (RSD 1.16%-5.30%), suggesting possible adulteration or poor manufacturing. Furthermore, the results of the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) showed an acceptable purity for the powder samples. On the other hand, among 35 capsules, 5 (14.29%) exceeded pharmacopeial limits (95%-105% PGL content), while 6 (17.14%) contained <95% PGL.
Discussion: These results demonstrate significant variability in PGL content and the presence of adulterants, underscoring the need for robust analytical methods in forensic chemistry. Furthermore, the LC-MS/MS method detected adulteration of PGL with codeine, paracetamol, and gabapentin in 2.9% of the analyzed capsules, suggesting custom mixing by perpetrators. In general, 31.43% of these samples failed to meet quality standards and contained substances beyond declared contents that posed toxicity risks, revealing inadequacies in illicit drug production and circulation. The UPLC-PDA method offers a rapid, validated approach for PGL quantification, while LC-MS/MS enhances adulterant detection, supporting forensic and quality control applications.
期刊介绍：
Frontiers in Chemistry is a high visiblity and quality journal, publishing rigorously peer-reviewed research across the chemical sciences. Field Chief Editor Steve Suib at the University of Connecticut is supported by an outstanding Editorial Board of international researchers. This multidisciplinary open-access journal is at the forefront of disseminating and communicating scientific knowledge and impactful discoveries to academics, industry leaders and the public worldwide.
Chemistry is a branch of science that is linked to all other main fields of research. The omnipresence of Chemistry is apparent in our everyday lives from the electronic devices that we all use to communicate, to foods we eat, to our health and well-being, to the different forms of energy that we use. While there are many subtopics and specialties of Chemistry, the fundamental link in all these areas is how atoms, ions, and molecules come together and come apart in what some have come to call the “dance of life”.
All specialty sections of Frontiers in Chemistry are open-access with the goal of publishing outstanding research publications, review articles, commentaries, and ideas about various aspects of Chemistry. The past forms of publication often have specific subdisciplines, most commonly of analytical, inorganic, organic and physical chemistries, but these days those lines and boxes are quite blurry and the silos of those disciplines appear to be eroding. Chemistry is important to both fundamental and applied areas of research and manufacturing, and indeed the outlines of academic versus industrial research are also often artificial. Collaborative research across all specialty areas of Chemistry is highly encouraged and supported as we move forward. These are exciting times and the field of Chemistry is an important and significant contributor to our collective knowledge.
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