Synthesis, characterization, method development, and validation of nor-ethylmorphine hydrochloride reference material...

Area of Science:

• Forensic Chemistry
• Analytical Chemistry

Background:

• Ethylmorphine is used therapeutically worldwide where morphine is not indicated.
• Nor-ethylmorphine is a major metabolite of ethylmorphine.
• A stable reference material for nor-ethylmorphine is needed to distinguish ethylmorphine from morphine intake, but none is commercially available.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize nor-ethylmorphine hydrochloride (HCl) as a reference material.
• To establish purity and potency data for the synthesized nor-ethylmorphine HCl.
• To provide a fit-for-purpose reference material for doping control analysis.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of nor-ethylmorphine HCl.
• Characterization using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry (HRMS).
• Purity and potency assessment via Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Thermogravimetry (TGA), and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC).

Main Results:

• Nor-ethylmorphine HCl was successfully synthesized and characterized.
• Purity was determined to be 98.29%.
• Potency was determined to be 96.40%.

Conclusions:

• The synthesized nor-ethylmorphine HCl serves as a reliable reference material.
• This material is suitable for doping control analysis in sports.
• It enables accurate differentiation between ethylmorphine and morphine intake.