ABSTRACT
Electrochemical oxidation is an excellent screening test to determine the metabolites of novel compounds such as synthetic cannabinoids, legal highs, and designer drugs. The metabolism of xenobiotics is mainly studied in vivo using laboratory animals or in vitro by incubation of the examined substance with liver microsomes. Both strategies require application of advanced separation techniques to analyze metabolites in complex biological matrices obtained from the animals' tissues. Cytochromes P450 are the main enzymes present in liver microsomes responsible for metabolic processes. Electrochemical oxidation products might be directly analyzed by mass spectrometry or separated by High-performance liquid chromatography prior to mass spectrometry analysis. The biggest problem pertains to proper optimization of analytical conditions, such as an appropriate electrolyte composition, the best potential of working electrode and the type of material it is constructed of. However, even the best optimization may not lead to the generation of all natural metabolites.
