Synthetic route sourcing of illicit at home cannabidiol (CBD) isomerization to psychoactive cannabinoids using ion mobility-coupled-LC–MS/MS

Interesting paper, describes side-reaction cannabinoids to be used as markers by LEOs to trace the method of production of illegal THCs from converted CBD via easy to acquire acids. Perhaps a first for cannabinoids, but an old LEO technique for tracing the synthetic route in clandestine labs.

https://sci-hub.tw/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0379073820300359?fbclid=IwAR11ShyvU9UqhVRa83EsA_BnwluBhHUOGz01djYmr3sgTLLCOn52mSimt_g

Synthetic route sourcing of illicit at home cannabidiol (CBD) isomerization to psychoactive cannabinoids using ion mobility-coupled-LC–MS/MS

Thomas D. Kiselak, Rachel Koerber, Guido F. Verbeck

This study focuses on the chemical route sourcing of illicitly produced D9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (D9-THC) via the acid-catalyzed cannabidiol isomerization reaction. Each of the acid-catalyzed reactions used acids that are readily available for the general population such as battery acid, muriatic acid, and vinegar.
After the acid-catalyzed isomerization was complete, an analysis using Liquid Chromatography-coupledMass Spectrometry (LC–MS)-coupled-ion mobility to confirm all synthetic impurities in the sample was conducted. The conducted chemical route sourcing allows law enforcement to be able to determine how CBD was converted to psychoactive cannabinoids. Specifically, 10-methoxy-THC, 11-hydroxy-THC, 11,5"-dihydroxy-D9-THC, and 5"-hydroxy-CBD were able to be used as indicators in the determination of the chemical route sourcing. Additionally, the ion mobility allowed for a rapid secondary separation of the psychoactive cannabinoids without the need for the long LC/MS analysis time.

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This is interesting but also concerning to me. This points to heightened interest in these derivations by law enforcement. This is a dangerous road that may lead to restricted access to CBD in general

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This paper was submitted in October of last year; they have known for a while.

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They’re probably the ones buying up boatloads of D8 right now

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mostly D8

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I posted this a while back in Data Dump:

I think the D8 results here are still developing and are trending towards better and safer conversion. I would hate to think what someone is making in their garage akin to open blasting just a few years ago.

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down right dangerous, and unethical.

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I smoked a lot of d8 converted using bleaching clay back in the day. I don’t have a clue what the unknowns were. At the very least they weren’t acutely toxic. I wish i had the magic power to predict chronic toxicity.

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Survivors bias isn’t some kinda scientific insight

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Never said it was, my friend

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Reports came out going on a year ago that black market carts were suddenly containing delta 8 in addition to delta 9. It’s always been on the radar. Who knows how much D9 comes from CBD but I’d be willing to bet a lot of what’s floating around isn’t safe to inhale

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I see where you’re coming from, and a don’t disagree in general, but I think “they weren’t acutely toxic” is a reasonable conclusion to draw from that particular bioassay (and the thousands that accompanied it).

It does not address the long term or chronic effects from @TheFeds know what unknowns in those or other samples.

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My review:

I’m not very familiar with this literature on MS and forensics methods at all. Maybe this is the standard in this domains. But I found that this paper was boring. I learned some info, but it clearly look like a paper these guys had to publish to show their academy they are working, and keep having some grants… :confused:

Besides the synthetic route sourcing method, the main scope actually rather seems advertising the Ion Mobility analysis as a very fast method (comparing it to another method which I find already quite fast). The authors repeated the same experience three times with a different acid. And then they report three times the sames things… 3x the experiment set up, 3x the analysis method, 3x times the results (there like 10x “confirms the presence of”)… They could have shortened the paper by putting lots of these data (especially mass numbers) in charts, and further putting those charts as appendix… this would have lead room for more hard facts (e.g. enlarging the catalyst families…).

Stil, there are some interesting things between all those mass number, regarding the identification of compounds, or at least groups of compounds… :thinking:
Unfortunately, they did not include the varin in their scope.
They saw 7 to 12 compounds depending on acid. There are actually at minimum 12 to 35 things in there (a lot minors, still). Here it is a matter of resolution, and sample concentration… they are eventually focusing on the main players (or likely groups of compounds in some cases).

They seem to see all THC isomers here, that’s interesting.
They also seems so see those 8-OH-iso-HHC and 9α-OH-HHC as the usual player besides d8/d9. That’s those two I suspected (and that most papers refer to…).
BUT they also see the same mysterious thing everyhwere, and think it should be d10.

So that intermediate that between CBD and d9, I still believe it is very likely that 9α-OH-HHC. But dealing with the other one, the enigma persists…

Is this d10 ? Is this 8-OH-iso-HHC ?
Is this an intermediate to d8 ? or a competitor ? (maybe a stupid question is it might be reversible…)

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Is there a statute of limitations for delayed prosecutions of isomerizations?

already posted in the isomerization thread :slight_smile: