A rapid method for determination of four thioamphetamine designer drugs (aleph-4, aleph-8, aleph-13, aleph-17) in human urine

An analytical procedure for the simultaneous determination in human urine of four
thioamphetamine designer drugs (ALEPH series) is reported. The quantitative analysis was
performed by capillary electrophoresis with diode array detector (CE-DAD), using 2,5-dimethoxy-4-
methylthioamphetamine-D3 (ALEPH-D3) as internal standard. In order to minimize interferences
with matrix components and to preconcentrate target analytes, solid phase extraction was introduced
in the method as a clean-up step. The method was validated according to international
guidelines. Data for accuracy and precision were within required limits. Calibration curves were
generated ranging from 1 to 500 lgmL1 and correlation coefficients always exceeded 0.998.
The method was demonstrated to be specific, simple, and reliable for the analysis of these derivatives
in urine samples.