Oxidation of MDMA in urine after exposure to bleach

For the drug testing of MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine or 'ecstasy') and other drugs of abuse, urine is generally the matrix of choice. However, the main issue concerned with urine drug testing is the lack of sample integrity due to acts of urine adulteration. A novel approach in the fight against urine adulteration is researched in this article, involving the use of LC-MS/MS (liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry) to study and identify stable reaction products between the chemical reaction of MDMA and hypochlorite. Samples were analysed on an X Bridge C 18 column ( 150mm x 4.6mm, 3.51-Jm, Waters). Chromatographic separation was achieved at a tlow rate of 0.3ml/min using gradient elution involving 2mM ammonium formate solution in Milli-Q water and acetonitrile as the mobile phases. Kinetic experiments were performed whereby 11-JL of urinary reaction mixture was injected every 30min of reaction. One major reaction product, N-chloroMDMA, was formed and found to be unstable at room temperature (20°C), possibly reverting back into MDMA. It is suggested that bleach may possibly be able to oxidise a low dosage of MDMA to below cutoff concentration values and thus, conceal MDMA use. However, more research is required