Identification and Quantitation of Cocaine N-Oxide:

Published: Journal of Analytical Toxicology, Volume 23, Number 1, January/February 1999, pp.62-66.

Short Communication

Identification and Quantitation of Cocaine N-Oxide: A Thermally Labile Metabolite of Cocaine
Ping Ping Wang and Michael G. Bartlett

In this article, we report the identification and quantitation of cocaine N-oxide (CNO), a thermally labile oxidative metabolite, from both animal and human samples. The concentration of CNO is similar to the concentrations of cocaine in the samples analyzed. The technique used for the determination of CNO in this study is liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, which is necessary because CNO is converted to cocaine upon heating. This includes simple heating of aqueous solutions to temperatures in excess of 100°C and analysis by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), in which CNO is converted to cocaine in the injection port. The thermal conversion of CNO to cocaine is estimated to cause an over-reporting of cocaine levels by 10–20% when using GC–MS.

Reproduction of editorial content of this journal is prohibited without publisher’s permission.

This article is available in its entirety by fax for $4.00 per page.
Visa or MasterCard accepted.

To order electronically click here
or call: 847-647-2900 ext. 1323
or fax request to: 847-647-1155.

Please indicate JAT volume and issue along with page numbers.