Comparative measurement of cocaine and its metabolites in blood, cerebrospinal fluid and the brain

This study investigated the transfer of cocaine and its metabolites from plasma into the cerebrospinal fluid. The concentration of cocaine and its metabolites in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid was determined by radioimmunoassay because this method only, the sum of the drug and metabolites restored. In sheeps a sublethal cocaine hydrochloride dose (2,4 mg/kg b. wt.) was administered intraarterial daily for up to 8 days. In the first hours after administration the concentration of cocaine in cerebrospinal fluid was low. It is supposed that a barrier against the transport of cocaine from blood into cerebrospinal fluid exists. After intrathecal administration a delay of transport could from CSF to blood not be seen.     

The importance of Simon's symptom in cases of hanging (author's transl)

Radiological and patho-anatomical investigations of the spines of 32 corpses of persons who had committed suicide by hanging revealed spine damage in 81% of the cases. The cervical spine was damaged in 69%, the lumbar spine in 56% of the cases. The typical damage of the cervical spine is a loosening of the discs at the dorsal side, usually at the level of C 4/5 to C 6/7. In the region of the lumbar spine, bleeding between the (anterior) ventral ligament and the discs is the most frequently observed damage (Simon's sy;mtpom). Simon bleeding is brought about by traction force and is not dependent on the age at death or on any existing degenerative changes of the spine.     

The use of combined spectroscopy in analytical toxicology (author's transl)]

The combined application of the four spectrometric techniques UV, IR, NMR and MS is an important analytical tool for the identification of the increasing number of potential poisons with which the analysts in the fields of forensic sciences and toxicology are confronted. Some of the contributions of these techniques to toxicological analyses are reviewed and illustrated by a few examples. Furthermore, the incorporation of the four methods into the analytical scheme, the requirements with respect to quantity and purity of the unkown substances, as well as the different possibilities for the combination of separation and identification techniques are outlined.