背景:Sars-Cov-2全球大流行对行动的限制和边界的关闭影响了全球非法药物市场,包括可卡因贩运.在这种情况下,比较可卡因中添加的切割剂和药物纯度是了解毒品贸易如何受到大流行影响的有价值的策略。
方法:在这项工作中,在巴西联邦区缉获的204份可卡因盐材料,在COVID-19大流行之前(2019年)和期间(2020年)通过两种分析技术进行了分析:气相色谱-质谱(GC-MS)和傅立叶变换红外光谱(FTIR)。统计分析,包括主成分分析(PCA),用于评估COVID-19大流行对当地市场的影响。文献计量分析是作为法医情报工具进行的。
结果:从2019年至2020年,可卡因平均纯度下降了26%,而切割剂的频率,作为咖啡因和麻醉剂(利多卡因,丁卡因)增加。未知的高百分比增加。2020年缉获的不同可卡因剖面显示了新的切割剂,例如Irganox1076和Irgafos168,表明在当地市场引入新掺假剂/稀释剂以减轻当地药物短缺的趋势。同样在2020年,当地可卡因缉获量有所增加,尽管可卡因药物纯度比2019年下降了26%。
结论:综合来看,这些数据表明,covid-19大流行影响了巴西联邦区的可卡因贩运,可卡因缉获量的增加,这可能表明对药物的需求增加,特别是,可卡因纯度和切割剂概况的变化,显示了贩运者如何在COVID-19限制期间试图最大限度地减少穿越巴西边境的困难。这些信息是相关的,因为巴西是可卡因向世界交易的主要出发点之一。文献计量分析表明,Irgafos168和Irganox1076首次被一致鉴定为可卡因切割剂。
BACKGROUND: Restrictions in movement and closure of borders imposed by the Sars-Cov- 2 worldwide pandemic have affected the global illicit drug market, including cocaine trafficking. In this scenario, comparing cutting agents added to the cocaine and the drug purity are valuable strategies to understand how the drug trade has been impacted by the pandemic.
METHODS: In this work, 204 cocaine salt materials seized in the Brazilian Federal District, before (2019) and during COVID-19 pandemics (2020) were analyzed by two analytical techniques: gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Statistical analyses, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA), were applied to evaluate the COVID-19 pandemic impact in the local market. Bibliometric analysis was performed as a forensic intelligence tool.
RESULTS: From 2019-2020, cocaine average purity decreased 26 % while the frequency of cutting agents, as caffeine and anesthetics (lidocaine, tetracaine) increased. The high percentage of unknown were increased. Different cocaine profiling seized in 2020 showed new cutting agents, such as Irganox 1076, and Irgafos 168, indicating a trend on new adulterants/diluents introduced in the local market to mitigate the local drug shortage. Also in 2020, there was an increase in the local cocaine seizures, despite of the cocaine drug purity decreased by 26 % compared to 2019.
CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, these data showed that the covid-19 pandemics has impacted cocaine trafficking in the Brazilian Federal District, an increase in cocaine seizures, which may indicate greater demand for the drug and, specially, changes in the cocaine purity and cutting agents profiling showing how traffickers tried to minimize difficulties in crossing the Brazilian border during COVID-19 restrictions. The information is relevant since Brazil is one of the major departure points for traded cocaine to the world. Bibliometric analysis showed that Irgafos 168 and Irganox 1076 were consistently identified as cocaine cutting agents for the first time.