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Cannabinoid disposition in oral fluid after controlled vaporizer administration with and without alcohol

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Abstract

Oral fluid (OF) is an advantageous matrix for cannabis detection, with on-site tests available for roadside drug-impaired driver screening. Limited data exist for device performance following consumption of vaporized cannabis, which reduces exposure to harmful combustion by-products. We assessed cannabinoid OF disposition, with and without alcohol, and evaluated on-site Dräger® DrugTest 5000 performance (Dräger) following controlled vaporization of cannabis. Forty-three cannabis smokers (≥1×/3 months, ≤3 days/week) reported 10–16 h prior to dosing, and drank placebo or low-dose alcohol [target ~0.065 % peak breath-alcohol concentration (BrAC)] 10 min prior to inhaling 500 mg of placebo, low-dose [2.9 % ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)], or high-dose (6.7 % THC) vaporized cannabis (within-subjects; six possible alcohol–cannabis combinations; 19 completers). BrAC readings and OF (Quantisal™, Dräger) were collected before and up to 8.3 h post-dose. Median [range] maximum OF concentrations (C max) for low and high doses (no alcohol, N = 19) were 848 [32.1–18,230] and 764 [25.1–23,680] µg/l THC; 6.0 [0–100] and 26.8 [1.0–1106] µg/l cannabidiol; 54.4 [1.8–941] and 29.7 [0–766] µg/l cannabinol; and 24.1 [0–686] and 18.0 [0–414] ng/l 11-nor-9-carboxy-THC (THCCOOH). Lack of significant differences in THC concentration between low doses and high doses indicated that participants may have titrated doses. THC, cannabidiol and cannabinol C max values were immediately post-inhalation, but metabolite THCCOOH t max showed interindividual variability. Concurrent alcohol did not affect OF cannabinoid concentrations or on-site test sensitivity. With a THC confirmation cutoff of 5 µg/l, Dräger sensitivity, specificity, and efficiency were 60.8, 98.2, and 82.5 %. Dräger had lower sensitivity after 6.7 % THC vaporization (53.8 %, THC ≥2 µg/l confirmation cutoff) than reported following smoking a 6.8 % THC cigarette, but high specificity (99.3 %) and comparable efficiency (65.0 %). Vaporized THC bioavailability may be lower than that when smoked. Confirmation cutoff, time course, intake histories, and additional cannabinoid analytes also affect OF interpretation.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the nurses and staff of the University of Iowa Clinical Research Unit, as well as the staff of the National Advanced Driving Simulator, for contributions to data collection. We further acknowledge Cheryl Roe, Jennifer Henderson, Rose Schmitt, and Kayla Smith for data assembly and coordination, and Allan J. Barnes for instrumentation expertise. We acknowledge the University of Maryland, Baltimore Toxicology Program, and the Graduate Partnership Program, National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Dräger DrugTest 5000, Quantisal, and Volcano devices and supplies were provided by the manufacturers to NIH through Materials Transfer Agreements. This research was funded by the Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse, NIH, the United States Office of National Drug Control Policy, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Conflict of interest

Ms. Hartman and Drs. Anizan, Jang, Yun, Gorelick, and Huestis report research funding through interagency agreements from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Office of National Drug Control Policy; and nonfinancial support (devices provided via Materials Transfer Agreements) from Storz-Bickel, Immunalysis, and Dräger, during the course of the study. Dr. Yun additionally reports grant funding from the National Key Technology R&D Program of China (2012BAK02B02-2). Drs. Brown, Milavetz, Spurgin, and Gaffney report contract research funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Office of National Drug Control Policy, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse; and nonfinancial support (devices provided via Materials Transfer Agreements) from Storz-Bickel, Immunalysis, and Dräger, during the course of the study. No commercial organization participated in study design, data analysis, or manuscript writing.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chemistry and Drug Metabolism, Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse, NIH, 251 Bayview Boulevard Ste 200 Rm. 05A721, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Rebecca L. Hartman, Sébastien Anizan, Moonhee Jang, Keming Yun, David A. Gorelick & Marilyn A. Huestis

  2. National Forensic Service, Seoul, Republic of Korea

    Moonhee Jang

  3. National Advanced Driving Simulator, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Timothy L. Brown

  4. School of Forensic Medicine, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, People’s Republic of China

    Keming Yun

  5. Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    David A. Gorelick

  6. College of Pharmacy, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Gary Milavetz & Andrew Spurgin

  7. Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Gary Gaffney

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  1. Rebecca L. Hartman
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  2. Sébastien Anizan
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  3. Moonhee Jang
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  4. Timothy L. Brown
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  5. Keming Yun
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  6. David A. Gorelick
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  9. Gary Gaffney
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  10. Marilyn A. Huestis
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Correspondence to Marilyn A. Huestis.

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Hartman, R.L., Anizan, S., Jang, M. et al. Cannabinoid disposition in oral fluid after controlled vaporizer administration with and without alcohol. Forensic Toxicol 33, 260–278 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11419-015-0269-6

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