SOFT 2004 Meeting Abstracts - Society of Forensic Toxicologists

P27
ANALYSIS OF POSTMORTEM BONEIBONE MARROW SPECIMENS FOR DRUGS OF
IMPORTANCE IN FORENSIC TOXICOLOGY
Kelly K. McGrath* and Amanda 1. Jenkins, Ph.D, The Office of the Cuyahoga County Coroner, 11001
Cedar Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106, U.S.A.
To date, there is a paucity of literature published on the determination of drugs in bone and bone marrow.
This type of research is important forensically because the extraction of bone specimens may be useful
when traditional postmortem samples are not available for toxicological analysis. Postmortem bone
samples, taken from the iliac crest in adults and vertebrae in infants, were extracted and analyzed for the
presence of benzodiazepines and cocaine and metabolites. The purpose of this study was to correlate the
concentration of drugs found in postmortem blood with the concentrations in boneibone marrow samples.
The specimens were thoroughly cleaned by removing all traces of skeletal muscle and tissue and then
rinsing with deionized water until the wash ran clear. Two grams of each bonelbone marrow sample was
cut into slivers and soaked in 4 milliliters of methanol for sixteen hours (± 0.5 hours). Cocaine and
metabolites were extracted from the methanol by liquid/liquid extraction followed by solid phase extraction
(SPE), derivatization with MSTFA,· and analysis by GCIMS in single ion monitoring (SIM) mode.
Benzodiazepines (BDP) were isolated from the methanol extract by liquid/liquid extraction and analyzed
by GC/ECD.
The concentration of drugs found in the bonelbone marrow samples was compared to postmortem blood
toxicology results. Three of seven cases analyzed for cocaine and metabolites were positive. In one case,
cocaine was quantitated at 120 nglg bone, cocaethylene 80 nglg bone, and ecgonine methyl ester (EME)
was qualitatively positive. The heart blood results in this case were benzoylecgonine (BE) 332 ng/ml,
cocaine 144nglml, cocaethylene 32 nglml, and EME qualitatively positive. In another case, BE was
quantitated at 666 nglg bone and in the heart blood BE was 522 nglml. The third case had 48 nglg bone
cocaethylene and EME was qualitatively positive. The heart blood in this case contained 211 ng/ml BE, 29
nglml cocaine, and EME was qualitatively positive. The remaining four cases were negative for cocaine
and metabolites in the boneibone marrow and the blood concentrations for BE and cocaine ranged from
123 nglrnl-394 nglml and 24 ng/ml-29 nglml respectively. These positive cases demonstrate that cocaine
and metabolites can be detected in bone, but the presence of specific analytes may differ from those present
in the blood and the concentration of the analytes in boneibone marrow may be higher or lower than that in
the blood. Therefore, these results should be interpreted cautiously.
Six cases were examined for the presence ofBDP. Ofthese six cases, four were positive for diazepam with
values ranging from 0.60 ug/g bone-2.4 ug/g bone, four were positive for desmethyldiazepam (DMD) with
. values ranging from 0.32 uglg bone-l.6 uglg bone, and one case was unsuitable for analysis. In the cases
where diazepam was positive in the bonelbone marrow, the heart blood concentrations ranged from 0.13
mg/L-0.39 mg/L. DMD in the heart blood ranged from 0.10 mg/L-0.67 mg/L. In every case where
diazepam and/orDMD were present in the heart blood, both were also recovered in the boneibone marrow.
These results demonstrate that· bonelbone marrow specimens may be utilized as an alternative matrix for
postmortem toxicological analysis where traditional matrices are not available. The preliminary data on
cocaine and metabolites and BDP failed to show a linear correlation between boneibone marrow and blood
drug concentrations. It appears that the likelihood of detecting a drug in boneibone marrow specimens
depends on the type of drug being analyzed. Future investigation of other drug classes such as opiates,
basic, and acidic/neutral drugs may provide additional information for the elucidation of correlation data
between bonelbone marrow and blood specimens.
KEYWORDS: Bone, Cocaine, Benzodiazepine
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