Identification of Cathine in Unknown White Crystalline Substance in Sri Lanka

Abstract

The drug abuse in Sri Lanka is continuously grown fast and variety of new narcotic drugs comes to the market day by day. Cathine {(1S,2S)-2-amino-1-phenylpropan-1-ol} is a monoamine alkaloid found naturally in the shrub Catha edulis (Khat). It is a psychoactive drug of the phenethylamine and amphetamine chemical classes which act as a stimulant. The drug responsible for the CNS stimulating effect and it can be isolated from fresh khat leaves. Synthetic Cathinones and Cathine referred to as designer Drugs, Party drugs or club drugs. Cathine was detected recently in the Narcotic Laboratory of Government Analyst’s Department and this is the first report of finding Cathine in Sri Lanka. The white crystalline substance concealed in an envelope was delivered to the Narcotic Laboratory of Government Analyst’s Department of Sri Lanka for further analytical examination including qualitative and quantitative analysis. Preliminary colour test and secondary test including TLC, UVVisible spectroscopy, GC-MS, FTIR spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy were performed for qualitative analysis. The results revealed that the unknown white crystalline substance contained Cathine Hydrochloride and it was found for the first time in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, GC with FID detector was carried out to find the quantification results and it revealed that the unknown substance contained nearly 23% of Cathine Hydrochloride in the sample. The tendency may be more common that most new designer drugs are prepared to circumvent existing legislation and becoming attractive to illicit drug cookers in the world.