25I-NBOH: a new potent serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonist identified in blotter paper seizures in Brazil

Luciano Chaves Arantes; Ettore Ferrari Júnior; Luciano Figueiredo de Souza; Andriele Costa Cardoso; Thaynara Lino Fernandes Alcântara; Luciano Morais Lião; Yuri Machado; Rogério Araújo Lordeiro; José Coelho Neto; Ana Flávia B Andrade

doi:10.1007/s11419-017-0357-x

25I-NBOH: a new potent serotonin 5-HT_2A receptor agonist identified in blotter paper seizures in Brazil

Forensic Toxicol. 2017;35(2):408-414. doi: 10.1007/s11419-017-0357-x. Epub 2017 Feb 16.

Affiliations

¹ Instituto de Criminalística, Polícia Civil Do Distrito Federal, SPO, Lote 23, Bloco E, Brasília, DF 70610-200 Brazil.
² Instituto de Criminalística Leonardo Rodrigues, Superintendência da Polícia Técnico-Científica do Estado de Goiás, Goiânia, GO 74425-030 Brazil.
³ Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Campus Samambaia, Goiânia, GO 74001-970 Brazil.
⁴ Divisão de Laboratório, Instituto de Criminalística da Polícia Civil de Minas Gerais, Rua Juiz de Fora, 400, Belo Horizonte, MG 30180-060 Brazil.
⁵ Departamento de Física e Química, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Avenida Dom José Gaspar, 500, Belo Horizonte, MG 30535-901 Brazil.
⁶ School of Chemistry, University of Lincoln, Brayford Pool, Lincoln, LN6 7TS UK.

Abstract

A new potent serotonin 5-HT_2A receptor agonist was identified in blotter papers by several state level forensic laboratories in Brazil. The 25I-NBOH is a labile molecule, which fragments into 2C-I when analyzed by routine seized material screening gas chromatography (GC) methods. GC-mass spectrometry (MS), liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight-MS, and Fourier transform infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance analyses were performed to complete molecular characterization. Individual doses range from 300 to 1000 μg. Despite its being a potent 5-HT_2A receptor agonist, 25I-NBOH is neither registered in the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) nor classified as a scheduled substance in most countries. Sweden and Brazil seem to be the only countries to control 25I-NBOH. To our knowledge, this is the first scientific report dealing with identification of 25I-NBOH in actual seizures.

Keywords: 25I-NBOH; 5-HT2A receptor agonist; NBOH; NPS; Phenethylamine derivatives.