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From Death du Jour, Chapter 24;

“I’m sorry, Lou. Go over that again.”

“It’s not new. The increase in drug-related deaths in recent years has prompted research into testing for pharmaceuticals in carrion-feeding insects. I don’t have to tell you that bodies aren’t always found right away, so investigators may not have the specimens they need for tox analysis. You know, blood, urine, or organ tissues.”

“So you test for drugs in maggots?”

“You can, but we’ve had better luck with the puparial casings. Probably because of the longer compared to the larvae. We’ve also played exuviae and frass . . .”

“Which is?”

“Cast-off beetle skins and fecal matter. We’re finding the highest drug levels in the fly puparia, though. That probably reflects feeding preference. While beetles prefer dried integument, flies go for soft tissues. That’s where drug concentrations are likely to be greatest”

“What’s been found?”

“The list is pretty long. Cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, amitriptyline, nortriptyline. Most recently we’ve been working with 3,4-methylenedioxymethanphetamine.”

“Street name?”

“Ecstasy is the most common one.”

“And you’re finding these substances, in puparial casings?”

‘We’ve isolate both the parent drugs and their metabolites.”

“How?”

The extraction method is similar to that used on regular pathology samples, except that you have to break down the tough chitin/protein matrix in the insect puparia and exuviae so the toxins can be released. You do that by crushing the casings, then using either a stong acid or base treatment. After that, and a pH adjustment, you just use routine drug-screening techniques. We do a base extraction followed by liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. The ion breakdown indicates what’s in your sample and how much.”

I swallowed

“And you’re telling me you found, flunitrazepam in the puparial casings I sent?

“The ones associated-with the upper body contained two of its metabolites, desmethylflunitrazepam and 7-aminoflunitrazepam. The concentration of the parent drug was much greater than the metabolites.

“Which is consistent with acute rather than chronic exposure.”

“Exactamundo”

from "Death Du Jour" by Kathy Reichs, published by Arrow Books

Copyright © Kathleen J. Reichs 1999, quoted  by kind permission of the author 

Can you spot the scientific disciplines involved? Follow this link to find out.

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