Date of Award
Spring 5-28-2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department/Program
Forensic Science
Language
English
First Advisor or Mentor
Ana Pego
Second Reader
Marta Concheiro Guisan
Third Advisor
Flavia Roveri
Abstract
Hair external contamination poses significant challenges to the interpretation of hair testing results. Previous studies have shown that cosmetic hair treatments can reduce the concentration of drugs already present in the hair shaft. However, the impact of these treatments on externally deposited drugs remains largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate how gel and oil treatments affect external contamination by cocaine and benzoylecgonine. Fifteen authentic hair samples, with various colors and textures, were collected from volunteers and confirmed negative for cocaine and benzoylecgonine using a fully validated LC-MS/MS method. Each sample was divided into three groups: Group A underwent a cosmetic treatment followed by contamination with cocaine and benzoylecgonine; Group B was contaminated first and then treated cosmetically; and Group C was only contaminated. In-vitro contamination involved immersing the samples in a 1 μg/mL solution of cocaine or benzoylecgonine in water for 24 h, separately, followed by overnight drying. The samples were washed, extracted, filtered, and analyzed using reversed-phase LC-MS/MS. If hair was cosmetically treated prior to contamination, gel caused significant increases in both cocaine (n=15) and benzoylecgonine (n=15) with increasing averages of 442% and 291%, respectively. The application of Penetrating Argan Oil did not significantly alter the drug concentrations in either Group A or Group B compared to Group C. These findings illustrate that cosmetic treatments can influence drug concentrations by potentially increasing externally deposited cocaine and benzoylecgonine by affecting its uptake into the hair.
Recommended Citation
Abady, Esther, "Hairry Potter World: Are gel and oil the sorcerers magic to altering external cocaine and BE concentrations in hair" (2024). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/jj_etds/325