Sample Preparation Strategies for Forensic Toxicology Testing

There are a variety of sample preparation methods used for the analysis of drugs of abuse in physiological sample matrices such as blood, urine, oral fluid.

These include simple ‘dilute and shoot’, protein removal, phospholipid removal, liquid -liquid and solid phase extraction as well as many others.

With each method there is variability in the number of steps involved, specificity, and the suitability to automation.

Choosing the most suitable sample preparation technique can depend on the type of analytical challenge being addressed, for example certain methods can be used to screen for a large number of compounds and others can be selected to enhance sensitivity for a particular compound or class of compounds.

In this session, a number of sample preparation methods will be discussed in terms of their strengths and limitations and suitability for particular forensic toxicology applications.

This webinar will prepare the audience for the third session in the Forensic Toxicology Summer Webinar series where the use of a simple generic protocol is used to analyse a wide range of drugs of abuse in whole blood to support driving under the influence of drugs investigations.

Learning objectives:

• Uncover an overview of selective and generic methods for biological fluids
• How these sample preparation techniques can be applied to your most complex toxicological samples

Presenter: Jonathan Danaceau, Ph.D. (Principal Scientist, Waters Corporation)

Dr. Jonathan Danaceau, Ph.D. is a Principal Scientist with Waters. He received his B.S. in Biology from Allegheny College and a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Utah (Salt Lake City, UT). Jon came to Waters in 2011 after spending several years in the forensic toxicology and sports doping fields. Since joining Waters, he has focused on sample preparation and LC/MS/MS solutions for forensic, clinical research, and other bioanalytical applications. He is an expert in sample preparation and bioanalytical method development and has published several papers in these fields. Jon is currently with the Sample Preparation and Automation group within the Consumables and Lab Automation division at Waters.