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Browsing Centros by Author "Barroso, Mário"
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- Comparative study of sample preparation procedures to determine the main compounds in ayahuasca beverages by QuEChERS and high‐performance liquid chromatography analysisPublication . Gonçalves, Joana; Rosado, Tiago; Barroso, Mário; Restolho, José; Fernández, Nicolás; Luís, Ângelo; Gallardo, Eugenia; Duarte, Ana PaulaIntroduction Ayahuasca is a psychoactive drink originally consumed by indigenous people of the Amazon. The lack of regulation of this drink leads to uncontrolled consumption, and it is often consumed in religious contexts. Objective The aim of this work is to compare three miniaturised extraction techniques for extracting the main ayahuasca compounds from beverages. Methodology Three sample pretreatment techniques were evaluated (dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction [DLLME], microextraction by packed sorbent [MEPS] and QuEChERS [Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged and Safe]) for the simultaneous extraction of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), tetrahydroharmine (THH), harmine, harmaline, harmol and harmalol from ayahuasca beverage samples. Then, the most promising technique (QuEChERS) was chosen to pre-concentrate the analytes, subsequently detected by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to a diode array detector (HPLC-DAD). Results The procedure was optimised, with the final conditions being 500 μL of extractor solvent, 85 mg of primary secondary amine (PSA) and 4 s of vortexing. The analytical method was validated, showing to be linear between 0.16 and 10 μg/mL for β-carbolines and between 0.016 and 1 μg/mL for DMT, with coefficients of determination (R2) between 0.9968 and 0.9993. The limit of detection (LOD) and lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) were 0.16 μg/mL for all compounds, except for DMT (0.016 μg/mL) and extraction efficiencies varied between 60.2% and 88.0%. Conclusion The analytical methodology proved to be accurate and precise, with good linearity, LODs and LLOQs. This method has been fully validated and successfully applied to ayahuasca beverage samples.
- Novel synthetic opioids - toxicological aspects and analysisPublication . Tabarra, Inês Pires; Soares, Sofia; Rosado, Tiago; Gonçalves, Joana; Luís, Ângelo; Malaca, Sara; Barroso, Mário; Keller, Thomas; Restolho, José; Gallardo, EugeniaOver the past few years, there has been an emerging number of new psychoactive drugs. These drugs are frequently mentioned as "legal highs", "herbal highs", "bath salts" and "research chemicals". They are mostly sold and advertised on online forums and on the dark web. The emerging new psychoactive substances are designed to mimic the effects of psychoactive groups, which are often abused drugs. Novel synthetic opioids are a new trend in this context and represent an alarming threat to public health. Given the wide number of fatalities related to these compounds reported within the last few years, it is an important task to accurately identify these compounds in biologic matrices in order to administer an effective treatment and reverse the respiratory depression caused by opioid related substances. Clinicians dealing with fentanyl intoxication cases should consider that it could, in fact, be a fentanyl analogue. For this reason, it is a helpful recommendation to include synthetic opioids in the routine toxicological screening procedures, including analysis in alternative matrices, if available, to investigate poly-drug use and possible tolerance to opioids. To address this public health problem, better international collaboration, effective legislation, effective investigation, control of suspicious "research chemicals" online forums and continuous community alertness are required. This article aims to review diverse reported fatalities associated with new synthetic opioids describing them in terms of pharmacology, metabolism, posology, available forms, as well as their toxic effects, highlighting the sample procedures and analytical techniques available for their detection and quantification in biological matrices.
- Psilocybin as a New Approach to Treat Depression and Anxiety in the Context of Life-Threatening DiseasesPublication . Vargas, Ana Sofia; Luís, Ângelo; Barroso, Mário; Gallardo, Eugenia; Pereira, L.Psilocybin is a naturally occurring tryptamine known for its psychedelic properties. Recent research indicates that psilocybin may constitute a valid approach to treat depression and anxiety associated to life-threatening diseases. The aim of this work was to perform a systematic review with meta-analysis of clinical trials to assess the therapeutic effects and safety of psilocybin on those medical conditions. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was used to measure the effects in depression and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) was used to measure the effects in anxiety. For BDI, 11 effect sizes were considered (92 patients) and the intervention group was significantly favored (WMD = -4.589; 95% CI = -4.207 to -0.971; p-value = 0.002). For STAI-Trait, 11 effect sizes were considered (92 patients), being the intervention group significantly favored when compared to the control group (WMD = -5.906; 95% CI = -7.852 to -3.960; p-value ˂ 0.001). For STAI-State, 9 effect sizes were considered (41 patients) and the intervention group was significantly favored (WMD = -6.032; 95% CI = -8.900 to -3.164; p-value ˂ 0.001). The obtained results are promising and emphasize the importance of psilocybin translational research in the management of symptoms of depression and anxiety, since the compound may be effective in reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety in conditions that are either resistant to conventional pharmacotherapy or for which pharmacologic treatment is not yet approved. Moreover, it may be also relevant for first-line treatment, given its safety.
- Synthetic cannabinoids in biological specimens: a review of current analytical methods and sample preparation techniquesPublication . Rosado, Tiago; Gonçalves, Joana; Luís, Ângelo; Malaca, Sara; Soares, Sofia; Vieira, Duarte Nuno; Barroso, Mário; Gallardo, EugeniaSynthetic cannabinoids are a new class of chemical drugs capable of modifying human behavior. These products do not contain cannabis, but produce similar effects after consumption. The fact that they are easily accessed, and are many times considered to be harmless, justifies their widespread use among young people. This fact, together with the difficulty in their detection by routine drug tests, makes it extremely important to develop new procedures able to detect and monitor their consumption. The aim of this work is to perform a critical review regarding the human biological samples that can be used for the determination of synthetic cannabinoids, paying special attention to analytical methods and sample preparation techniques. The reviewed articles deal with the determination of synthetic cannabinoids in the context of forensic and toxicological analysis.