UCT Scientist Chairing Forensic Toxicology Workshop at EAS 2013

The Eastern Analytical Symposium (EAS) will be holding its annual conference in Somerset, NJ from November 18-20.  At this year’s conference members from UCT, Inc. will be presenting a Forensic Toxicology workshop on November 19th in the Princeton Suite of the Garden State Exhibit Center.  The workshop will be chaired by Dr.Jeff Hackett.

Dr. Hackett will also be presenting case studies involving the forensic toxicological analyses of new designer drugs.  Mike Telepchak, CEO of UCT, will be presenting work on solid phase extraction (SPE) applications in forensic toxicology.  The session will include information on the SPE and analysis of Opiates using HILIC chromatography (James Anasti, Cedar Crest College, PA), and recommendations for the analysis of drugs in drugs and driving cases (Kayla Lowrie, Arcadia University, PA).  Attendees will learn how solid phase extraction is instrumental in creating efficient, productive analyses for the forensic toxicology lab.

Winners of the 2013 Excellence in SPE award

UCT, Inc. is proud to announce the 2013 winners of the Excellence in SPE award for forensic science. The award was presented this year by the CEO of UCT, Michael Telepchak. The awards were announced during the luncheon presentation ‘Advances in Sample Preparation’ at SOFT in Orlando, Florida.

This year there were two winning submissions. The first is from Dr. Jeanne Beano and her group at the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office. The work submitted was Identification and Quantitation of Cathinone Derivatives in Case Samples (DUID and postmortem) “Bath Salts”.

The second award goes to the Cuyahoga County Regional Forensic Science Laboratory and the team led by Dr. John Wyamn for their paper Postmortem tissue distribution of MDPV following lethal intoxication by “bath salts”; Journal of Analytical Toxicology 37, no. 3 (2013): 182-185.

Congratulations to these two winners and thank you to everyone that submitted works for consideration! We look forward to reviewing the ongoing innovation and progress in the field of forensic science when we open the competition for next year’s award.

SOFT 2013

It is that time of year again; time for the annual SOFT meeting, being held in Orlando, Florida from October 28 – November 1. UCT, a staunch supporter of the forensic community is again a platinum vendor of this year’s program. At this meeting UCT is launching an all new HPLC column phase – the Selectra® DA. In addition, UCT is now offering its own Selectrazyme™ line of beta-glucuronidase, and our latest instrumentation - the 96 well plate format positive pressure manifold will be on display. 

One highlight of our participation this year is Dr. Jeff Hackett co-chairing the workshop section ‘Solid Phase Extraction: Applications in Forensic Toxicology’ along with Mr. Albert Elian of the Massachusetts State Police Forensic Services Group. This workshop includes presentations from other forensic toxicologists and analytical scientists including Dr. Karen Scott, Mr. Mike Telepchak, Mr. Robert M. Sears, Dr. Tom Rosano, and Mr. Tracy McKinnon. 

Additionally, UCT will be hosting a ‘Lunch and Learn’ session on Tuesday, October 29 entitled ‘Advances in Sample Preparation’ presented by Dr. Mike Coyer of Northern Tier Research and Mr. Mike Telepchak of UCT. And for everyone’s entertainment, UCT is one of the co-sponsors for the signature social event of the week; an exclusive viewing of the Cirque du Soleil® show ‘La Nouba’.

PS200 Hydrophobic Glass Coating

PS200 is a product that serves the needs of several markets.  These markets include;

Ø  Optical Fibers

Ø  Laboratory Glassware

Ø  Fluorescent Light Bulbs

Ø  Clinical Analysis

Following treatment with PS200, Optical Fibers benefit by having greater lubricity and are less likely to break or shard during fabrication and operational flexing. 

After being treated with PS200, Laboratory Glass exhibits improved drainage, greater strength and is less likely to scratch or break if dropped.

When Fluorescent Light Bulbs are treated with PS200, the finished lights show greatly improved scratch resistance and surface resistivity.  And as in the aforementioned examples, the strength of the glass bulb is increased so that breakage is dramatically reduced.

Clinical analytical equipment can be treated with PS200 and result in extended clotting times and reduced hemolysis and protein adsorption with blood samples

And PS200 is easy to use!

Just clean the glass surface with an alkaline detergent and rinse well with tap water.

Using ordinary tap water, prepare a 1% PS200 solution.

Immerse the object in the PS200 solution for 5 to 10 seconds, ensuring that all the surfaces are wetted by the solution.

After immersion, remove the object from the solution and thoroughly rinse with tap water to remove the excess PS200 from the surface.

Cure the treated object by bringing the surface temperature to 100°C for three to five minutes.  Or cure by air drying for 24 hours in a relative humidity less than 65%.

PS200 has a 6 month shelf life and cannot be used for food or drug applications.

UCT Specialties is the manufacturer of Petrarch® brand high quality specialty silanes, reactive silicones, catalysts and coatings for a variety of manufacturing markets.

UCT at 2013 Gulf Coast Conference

UCT will be exhibiting at this year’s Gulf Coast Conference at the Moody Gardens Convention Center

in Galveston Texas.  The Gulf Coast Conference is a non-profit organization oriented toward the education and advancement of knowledge of Chemical Analysis Technology associated with the Petrochemical, Refining, and Environmental fields.  If you are at the event, stop by and see us at booth 803.  Our technical representatives will be on hand to talk about our new EPA Method 8270 extraction cartridge system as well as a new polystyrene DVB bead for EPA method 528 (UCT part# ECHLD156).

UCT at Joint CAT/SAT 2013 Meeting

UCT is proud of its support of Forensic Toxicologists and Toxicology groups around the world. The California Association of Toxicologists and Southwestern Association of Toxicologists are hosting a joint fall meeting in Las Vegas, NV this year on September 20-21.  UCT will be exhibiting at this meeting where many regional and national toxicologists will gather to discuss the latest advances in the field. UCT will be represented by Bill Leavitt and Ruchita Patel.  Stop by to learn about our latest applications and products including a new 96 well plate PPM and Beta-Glucuronidase.

Clean Screen DAU and Monoacetylmorphine

For Forensic toxicologists working with either post mortem or human performance testing samples, the confirmation of 6-acetylmorphine (6-MAM) is considered definitive evidence of heroin abuse.  A recent study conducted by forensic scientists at Cuyohoga Medical Examiners Laboratory and published in the Journal of Analytical Toxicology (August 2013) investigated the possibility that aspirin, when in solution with morphine, may acetylate morphine to produce acetylmorphine (6-MAM).

Incubated samples were extracted using UCT's CleanScreen® DAU solid phase extraction cartridges and derivatized with UCT's Selectra-Sil® MSFA reagent.  Samples were then analyzed by gas chromatography with a mass spec detector. The analysts found that both 3- and 6-MAM were detected in samples containing morphine and aspirin in combination; no heroin was detected.  Production of acetylmorphine was pH dependent with optimal formation at pH above 4.  In gastric contents, concentrations of 3-MAM exceeded that of 6-MAM by 10-fold.  Production of 3-MAM in gastric contents was approximately twice as high as it was in water, meanwhile the matrix did not appear to affect 6-MAM production.

Over 10,000 urine specimens assayed at a pain management laboratory and over 6,000 postmortem cases were also investigated for in vivo formation of monoacetyl morphine.  Three cases exhibited unexplained 6-MAM results.  These data indicate that in vivo formation of 6-MAM from the co-administration of aspirin and morphine, if it happens, is quite rare.  In instances where this is suspected, 3-MAM should be monitored.  The study results also nullify the idea being purported in some areas that SPE columns can produce false positive results by acetylating morphine in situ. This supports data from other medical examiners laboratories who have failed to produce 6-MAM on mixed mode SPE columns.

UCT Specialties, Manufacturer of the Petrarch® Line of Specialty Silicones, is Used as Standard for Linear Viscoelelastic Crosslinked Silica Reinforced Poly(dimethyl-siloxane) Rubber Study

Experimental  work by Palade, et.al,. recently published in Materiale Plastice (50, 1, 2013) utilized two UCT Specialty products in their studies.  The vinylmethylsiloxane copolymers, PS 424 and PS 426 (trimethylsiloxy-terminated, dimethylsiloxane, vinylmethylsiloxy copolymers) were compounded with two different silica samples on a roll mill.  The objective of the study was to better understand the influence of the material microstructure on the shear thermoviscoelastic behavior using temperatures above T_g.  Silica was introduced to the samples at 0%, 10% and 20% weight loadings.  The results of the study showed that after aging for up to 30 days at 200°C no significant influence on the viscoelastic behavior of the polymers was observed and that particle migration was not contrary to past experimental trials.  It was also stated that extended cure times would have to be used to better define the parameters of the experiments.

UCT Specialties is the manufacturer of Petrarch® brand high quality specialty silanes, reactive silicones, catalysts and coatings for a variety of manufacturing markets.

UCT at TIAFT 2013

UCT is proud of its support of Forensic Toxicologists and Toxicology groups around the world. The International Association of Forensic Toxicologists (TIAFT) is celebrating its 50th year of activity in 2013; and the TIAFT annual meeting is being held on the island of Madeira, Portugal from September 1st through the 6th.  UCT will be exhibiting at this auspicious meeting where many of the major international toxicologists will gather to discuss the latest advances in the field. UCT will be represented by Hocine Omari, one of our International Sales Representatives.  Stop by to learn about our latest applications and products.

UCT Specialties, the manufacturer of the Petrarch line of specialty silanes, continues to find use in the biomaterials field

Research in the Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part A recently published that tridecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetrahydrooctyl-1-trichlorosilane (T2492) from UCT Specialties (United Chemical Technologies) was a key component in research to develop a simple 1D submicron, and linear patterned extracellular matrix on a multilayer silicone material.  Specifically, the T2492 was used to adhere via vapor deposition Pluronic F127 blocking agent to a plasma treated polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) well. The goal of the work is to create a 1D manufacturing process that is simpler and cheaper than other 1D processes, which require great skill and expensive equipment to manufacture.  If the manufacturing hurdles can be overcome, 1D cell culture environments may offer advantages over currently popular 3D cultures.  Both 1D and 3D environments appear to present similar cellular morphology and behavior patterns.  However, 1D may make the control of external environmental parameters, such as applied mechanical forces, easier for biologists to control than current 3D systems.

UCT Specialties continues to manufacture high quality specialty silanes, reactive silicones, catalysts and coatings for a variety of manufacturing markets.  Coupled with our excellence in the Solid Phase Extraction chromatography markets, this demonstrates UCT Inc.’s ongoing leadership for your silicon related chemistry products

Reference: Dixon AR, Moraes C, Csete ME, Thouless MD, Philbert MA, Takayama S. 2013. One-dimensional patterning of cells in silicone wells via compression-induced fracture.
J Biomed Mater Res Part A 2013;00A:000–000.

UCT Announces the Launch of a New EPA Method 8270 Solid Phase Extraction Product at NEMC 2013

The National Environmental Monitoring Conference (NEMC) will take place in San Antonio, TX this year from August 5-9.  NEMC is the largest conference focused solely on environmental measurements in North America. The conference brings together scientists and managers from federal and state agencies, the regulated community, academia, and laboratory and engineering support communities.  At this year’s conference UCT is excited to announce the launch of a new two column cartridge system for EPA method 8270 sample extractions.  Please stop by our booth, #40, to learn more about this new product.  Also, be sure to stop by our poster, ‘Complete Determination of Acids, Bases, and Neutrals in Water Using Solid Phase Extraction for EPA Method 8270’ to speak with Dr. Xiaoyan Wang, one of our applications chemists.

UCT at NACRW

UCT is proud to be a platinum sponsor at this year’s NACRW conference taking place next week from July 21 – 24.  This year, UCT’s CEO, Michael Telepchak, is the president of the conference organizing committee and is honored to fill this role in anticipation of a memorable meeting celebrating the 50^th anniversary of this important show.  We look forward to meeting with all the attendees during the course of the week.  Please stop by our booths 40 & 41, or come to our lunch and learn seminar being presented in the Tarpon Key Room on Tuesday July 23.  Dr. Brian Kinsella and Michael Telepchak will be presenting on the ‘The Chemistry of QuEChERS: Theory, Method Development, and Applications.’

Pepsi containing 4-methylimidazole

CBS News recently reported on the discovery by a watchdog group, The Center for Environmental Health, that the caramel coloring used in Pepsi contains high levels of a probable carcinogen according to the state of California.    It has found the compound 4-methylimidazole, or 4-Mel, from Pepsi samples acquired in 10 different states.   This link will take you to the original article.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-204_162-57592155/environmental-group-cancer-causing-agent-found-in-pepsi-products/

If you are interested in investigating this further in your lab, UCT has the SPE tools to help you do the extraction.  Contact methods@unitedchem.com for help.

UCT presenting Workshop and Case Study Presentations at LTG (formerly London Toxicology Group) meeting in London, July 5

UCT is proud to announce its sponsorship of the United Kingdom’s LTG July 5th meeting.  LTG was founded in the 1970's in order to provide a forum for toxicologists around the United Kingdom to come together and discuss topics of interest regarding the field of forensic toxicology.  UCT maintains a significant presence for providing products and technical support for the forensic toxicology field.  As part of its sponsorship and commitment to the LTG and forensics in general, UCT’s Dr. Jeff Hackett will be offering our UCT SPE workshop as well as presenting a series of case studies highlighting the analysis of designer drugs.  The studies being presented employ two of UCT flagship sorbents (Clean Screen DAU for the analysis of Methoxetamine, and Clean Screen THC for AM-2201).

Need an alternative to Toxi-Tubes?

UCT is well recognized for excellence in SPE. It is also the premiere supplier for sample prep products to the Forensic / Clinical Toxicology Community. Recently, it was announced that a general drug screening tool, the Toxi-Tubes® from Agilent, is being discontinued this fall. UCT understands that this is putting a lot of pressure on analysts to search for an alternate pathway to prepare their samples.  UCT has always provided the ideal solution for extraction and analysis - the Clean Screen suite of SPE cartridges. Clean Screen DAU is the flagship sorbent for all types of confirmations; however, it can also be used as a sorbent for screens. It extracts all weak acids, neutrals, and bases resulting in clean, reproducible extracts. This front end effort makes for a cleaner injection port and detector source on your GC/MS and/or LC/MS meaning more instrument up time and less noise in your chromatograms. If time is of critical importance - UCT also offers the Clean Screen Xcel range of SPE tubes. This product line requires no tube pre-conditioning, just a simple sample load, wash, and elute process. In addition to products to ease your transition to a new extraction technique, UCT also has a team of in-house and field application specialists that can help you with your transition to a new and better sample preparation for your biological matrices. Contact us at info@unitedchem.com or call us at 215-781-9255 or 800-385-3153 to discuss how we can help you keep the samples moving through your lab.

Toxi-Tubes® is a registered trademark of Agilent Technologies, Inc.

Clean Screen DAU unravels the “Hook” Effect

The "Hook Effect" (or "hooking effect") is a phenomenon common to bimolecular detection systems involving saturable reagents (beads, labeled antibodies, streptavidin, etc.) used to capture specific binding partners or analytes. The hook effect occurs when an ELISA system is overwhelmed with the target analyte resulting in lower than expected or suppressed readings for high analyte concentration samples – potentially resulting in false negative results. This can be an issue in Forensic Toxicology where Immunoassay techniques are used as the primary screening methodology. It may lead to anomalous or erroneous results especially at high analyte concentrations. It can be resolved by using a second, separate analytical technique (e.g. GC-MS).

In order to evaluate any suspected “hooking” an analyst needs an extraction method with the capacity to handle high concentrations of drugs in realistic settings. In a recent report published in the Journal of Analytical Toxicology (e-published in June 2013), Dr. Sheila Dawling’s team (Department of Pathology, Microbiology, & Immunology; Vanderbilt  University Medical Center, Nashville, TN) looked at a presumed hook effect in the semi-quantitative DRI Oxycodone immunoassays in 14 urine samples with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) >10,000 ng/mL. These samples included the index case, a false-negative  result with >75,000 ng/mL oxycodone . Dr. Dawling’s team employed UCT’s flagship Clean Screen DAU sorbent to isolate the drugs from real cases. Her methodology was based on an already validated method (Broussard et al. (Clinical Chemistry, 1997 43, 1029–1032)), which also employed the Clean Screen DAU to analyze codeine, morphine, hydrocodone, and hydromorphone as the trimethyl silyl oximes in urine. Using the premier SPE column available to forensic toxicologists, Dr. Dawling was able to correctly identify and correct this perceived “hook effect” by being able to quantify very high concentrations of the oxycodone in real samples. This report demonstrates why UCT is known for producing the finest SPE sorbents for use with real samples.

The 32nd Annual Midwest Section of AOAC INTERNATIONAL

Meeting and Exposition will be taking place the week of June 3rd at the Wisconsin Dells, WI.  Technical specialist Don Shelly will be presenting a workshop, “The Chemistry of SPE”.  This will be a very instructive presentation covering the foundational principles and mechanisms of solid-phase extraction.  Pathways for developing a proper extraction and extract clean-up procedure will be discussed.  And of course, every audience member will walk away knowing what number is the most important number to remember when planning an SPE extraction!

Come join us for an exciting meeting in the heart of Wisconsin at the town dubbed the ‘Waterpark capital of America’

Clean Screen THC

In the area of forensic toxicology, it is well recognized that the analysis of THC and its metabolites is one
of the most frequently requested and challenging to interpret sample tests; especially in urine. Non-psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD) has a wide range of therapeutic applications and may also influence
psychotropic smoked cannabis effects. A sensitive and specific analytical method for CBD in urine
was needed to define urinary CBD pharmacokinetics after controlled CBD administration, and to
confirm compliance with CBD medications such as Sativex. Few methods exist for the quantification
of CBD excretion in urine, and no data are available for phase II metabolism of CBD to CBD-
glucuronide or CBD-sulfate.

A recent report (Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 2013 (405 15: 4679)) from the prestigious National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA, Baltimore MD) authored by Dr. Mateus M. Bergamaschi (working with Dr. Marilyn Huestis’ team at NIDA) optimized the hydrolysis of CBD glucuronide and/or -sulfate, and developed and validated a GC-MS method for urinary CBD quantification. The methodology employed UCT’s Clean Screen® THC (ZSTHC020) solid-phase extraction (SPE) to isolate and concentrate analytes prior to GC-MS. This solid phase sorbent is recognized by forensic toxicology laboratories around the globe as the premier material for THC related analysis.

This is the first method evaluating CBD hydrolysis in urine. The method proved robust, sensitive, and
specific for quantifying total CBD in human urine with a fast and simple sample prep that incorporates
Clean Screen® THC as a key component. This method can be applied for urinary CBD quantification
and further pharmacokinetics characterization following controlled CBD administration. The results
demonstrate UCT’s continued leadership in providing quality products for forensic analysis with its Clean
Screen® line of SPE sorbents.

Quantitative screening of genes regulating tryptophan hydroxylase transcription in Caenorhabditis elegans using microfluidics and an adaptive algorithm

Research published in Integrative Biology by Hyewon Lee, Matthew M. Crane, Yun Zhang and Hang Lu at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Harvard University (Integr. Biol., 2013, 5, 372-380) recently published that tridecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetrahydrooctyl-1-trichlorosilane (T2492) from UCT Specialties (United Chemical Technologies) was used in research developing a quantitative genetic screening process based on a simple adaptive algorithm using a single-layer multifluidic device. Conventional UV photolithography was used to transfer microarray features onto the transparency. The T2492 kept the PDMS from adhering to the masters. The resultant PDMS layer was cut into shape, punched for holes and bonded onto a cover slip to make complete devices.

UCT Specialties continues to manufacture high quality specialty silanes, silicones, catalysts and coatings for a vast variety of manufacturing markets. This expertise, coupled with our excellence in the Solid Phase Extraction chromatography markets demonstrates UCT's leadership for all your silicon related chemistry products.

UCT Salutes TIAFT 50th Anniversary London

UCT is proud to salute TIAFT's 50th anniversary conference held in London on the 26th and 27th April 2013 by being present at this auspicious gathering of world class forensic scientists and guests of honor. UCT's booth (#3) will be staffed by Hocine Omari, a senior member of UCT's international sales team, who will be on hand to discuss UCT's products throughout the meeting. Please come by and say hello, and Happy Birthday TIAFT!