Comparative study between active and passive exposure of methamphetamine or methoxyphenamine vapor- Aiming to contribute to the judiciary-

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K10693
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 58040:Forensics medicine-related
• Research Institution: Showa University
• Principal Investigator: Kaizaki-Mitsumoto Asuka (貝崎明日香) 昭和大学, 薬学部, 講師 (70407443)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: メタンフェタミン / 炙り使用 / 吸入 / 能動摂取 / 受動摂取 / 尿中濃度 / メトキシフェナミン

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Methamphetamine (METH) or methoxyphenamine (MPA) vapor was exposed to mice in an environment simulating active or passive ingestion, and urinary drug concentration trends were measured. The results showed that there was a large difference in urinary concentrations between active and passive ingestion, and that MPA can be useful as a METH model drug during vapor inhalation. Next, we measured the trend of urinary MPA concentrations in adult male subjects after active or passive ingestion of MPA vapor. The results showed that there was a large difference in urinary MPA concentration between active and passive ingestion in humans. Based on these results, if a suspect's urine is positive on the METH screening kit at the time of the investigation, the suspect is considered to be a person who is actively consuming METH.

Free Research Field

毒性学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

覚醒剤乱用は、1990年代半ばに加熱吸煙（炙り使用）という新たな摂取法の登場とともに若年層にも拡大し、それから現在まで、覚醒剤事犯は薬物事犯者の最多数で推移しており、深刻な社会問題である。しかしこれまで、炙り使用時の能動あるいは受動摂取における尿中濃度等に関する科学的な根拠が存在しなかったため、裁判において“受動摂取”を主張する被告人が増加し、裁判過程で混乱を招いていた。本研究で、実験動物だけでなく、ヒトにおいても加熱吸煙時の薬物動態（能動・受動摂取時の違い）を明らかにしたことは、司法において判断の基準となりうる科学的根拠や指標を示したということになり、社会的に大きな意義があると言える。