Latest blood test detects 12 popular synthetic cannabinoids in “fake pot”

WILLOW GROVE, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NMS Labs announced that it has expanded its synthetic cannabinoids (“Fake Pot”, K2, Incense) blood test to include 12 compounds – JWH-018, JWH-019, JWH-073, JWH-081, JWH-122, JWH-200, JWH-210, JWH-250, RCS-4, RCS-8, AM-694, and AM-2201. These drugs have all been shown to have cannabis-like effects, but many are currently legal to own, sell and use. NMS Labs has spent the last six months monitoring activity in the illicit drug using community, testing materials sold on the internet, and reviewing drugs added to various state and Federal lists of illegal compounds, to target the compounds of greatest concern for this test. This test uses LC tandem mass spectrometry, the technique with the greatest sensitivity and specificity to ensure that the results are highly specific and legally defensible.

NMS Labs National Director of Forensic Services, Dr. Barry Logan commented, “Concern is growing in the Medical Examiner and Emergency Room Physician communities about the adverse effects of these drugs, including tachycardia (rapid heart rate), seizures, and agitation, that can result in life threatening reaction. NMS Labs has made a commitment to provide Death Investigators, Clinicians, and Law Enforcement with the tools needed to identify these chemicals and other designer drugs in their investigations.”

The synthetic cannabinoid and designer drug markets are changing with unprecedented speed, leaving many laboratories struggling to keep up as producers in Asia and Eastern Europe turn out new drugs with ease. NMS Labs moved early on to offer testing for these materials in seized drug material, and has now refined and thoroughly validated the tests for biological specimens.

In addition to tests for synthetic cannabinoids, NMS Labs developed drug identification and toxicology tests for designer stimulants found in “bath salts.”

Dr. Logan further explained, “There are an astonishing variety of compounds being sold as ‘legal highs,’ many of them untested on humans, but similar to existing drugs with known adverse and potentially fatal side effects. Currently NMS Labs has tests available for novel hallucinogens and the major ‘bath salts’ chemicals and has over thirty more in development. Through our innovative test development, NMS Labs has shown itself to be passionate about public safety and providing science in the service of justice by offering tests that can stand up in a court of law.”

About NMS Labs:

NMS Labs is a national reference laboratory that is unsurpassed in its scope of toxicology tests, accuracy of results, scientific expertise, and innovation. NMS Labs is passionate about promoting public health and safety. For more information on NMS Labs, please visit www.nmslabs.com.