A broad-spectrum LC-MS/MS method for screening and quantification of 100 analytes in clinical and autopsy blood samples.

Liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS) has been tremendously used for screening purposes in forensic toxicology, because of their great adaptability and reasonable time/resource consumption. Herein, a fully validated method based on liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) in human whole blood, by a multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) analysis through LC-MS/MS, is described. The proposed method simultaneously detects 100 analytes (plus three deuterated internal standard compounds) belonging to many different classes, including drugs of abuse, prescription and over-the-counter drugs commonly involved in poisoning and medical malpractice cases in our territory, as well as certain new psychoactive substances (NPS) and toxic substances potentially associated with adverse effects. The optimised LLE employs one extraction step of 200 µL blood using 0.1 M HCl methyl-tert-butyl-ether (MTBE) (acidified with concentrated HCl) proved to be suitable for the extraction of basic and neutral substances; as a reconstitution solvent a mixture of 88:12v/v, 0.1 % formic acid in 10 mM aqueous ammonium acetate, pH 3.5: 0.1 % formic acid in acetonitrile was used, yielding satisfactory recoveries for all analytes. The method was sensitive, showing low LOD/ LOQ for all substances ranging from 0.01 to 5/ 0.05-20 ng/mL, respectively. Linearity ranged between 0.05-500 ng/mL (R2 = 0.9811-0.9995), and the inter- and intra-day precisions ranged between 3-15 % and 7-18 %, respectively. Accuracy was evaluated in terms of percentage recovery, lying within acceptable range. The matrix effect expressed as ion suppression/enhancement of each analyte was in the range ±25 % for all analytes. Post-preparative stability of analytes was higher than 85 %, while no carryover between runs was observed. The developed method has been successfully applied in routine toxicological analyses for the analysis of biological samples from clinical and autopsy cases.

Ethanol and Higher Alcohols' Production in Fungal and Bacterial Laboratory Cultures and Significance for Forensic Samples.

Ethanol can be produced by many microorganisms that colonize a dead body. Ethanol's concentration depends on the congener higher alcohols, 1-propanol, isobutanol, 2-methyl-1-butanol, 3-methyl-1-butanol, and 1-butanol, as previous research has shown. This correlation is expressed by mathematical models which estimate the concentration of microbial ethanol. The aim of this contribution was to study the ethanol and higher alcohols' production in various laboratory bacterial and fungal cultures and the applicability of the bacterial and fungal models (which concern the bacteria E. coli, S. aureus, K. pneumoniae, and E. faecalis, and the fungus C. albicans) in these samples, as well as in blood samples from autopsy cases, with the overall objective of investigating the models' applicability in routine casework. The bacteria and fungus were cultured in conventional culture media and in denatured human blood cultures under various conditions. The alcohols' concentrations were determined using a head space-gas chromatography-flame ionization detector (HS-GC-FID). The previously reported bacterial and yeast models were applied in the cultured samples and in blood from 122 autopsy cases. Our results showed that 1-propanol was not produced by C. albicans and E. faecalis under certain conditions. Also, 1-butanol was not produced by C. albicans, E. faecalis, and K. pneumonia under certain conditions. Furthermore, the bacterial models were applicable in postmortem samples irrespective of the microbes that were possibly activated in the sample, while the EC models showed the best applicability among all the bacterial and yeast models. The best applicability of the bacterial models was observed in autopsy blood with 0.10 g/L < BAC < 1.0 g/L in cases of violent and undetermined causes of death and in cases with putrefaction. Finally, the yeast models were applicable in limited, possibly special, autopsy cases. In conclusion, it could be inferred that the source of ethanol in any given postmortem blood sample is likely microbial if either most bacterial models or at least one model from each distinct bacterial species is successfully applicable.

The frequency of ethanol, higher alcohols and other low molecular weight volatiles in postmortem blood samples from unnatural deaths.

The determination of various volatiles in postmortem blood samples has been reported in many previous studies. The presence of some of them in postmortem specimens reflects microbial activity in the sample while others are detected mainly after consumption of alcoholic beverages or due to antemortem metabolic processes. This contribution aims to determine in 1954 postmortem blood samples, from respective number of unnatural deaths autopsy cases, the frequency of detection of some common volatile compounds, including acetaldehyde, acetone, 2-propanol, ethyl acetate, methanol, as well as, the higher alcohols 1-propanol, 1-butanol, isobutanol and 2-methyl-1-butanol and 3-methyl-1-butanol; moreover, their patterns in respect to the ethanol and 1-propanol concentrations and the putrefaction state of the corpse at autopsy. Acetone was the most frequently detected volatile (82 %), followed by acetaldehyde (44 %) and 2-propanol (34 %). Methanol was detected in 12 % of the samples and only in the presence of ethanol. The most frequently detected higher alcohol was 1-propanol (51 %), followed by isobutanol (8.5 %), 1-butanol (3.6 %) and methyl-butanols (2.0%); the latter three higher alcohols were detected in the presence of 1-propanol indicating possibly a common origin. Samples from cases with putrefaction had higher 1-propanol concentrations, than those without putrefaction, and, moreover, they were significantly correlated with 1-butanol concentrations.

Trends in counterfeit drugs and pharmaceuticals before and during COVID-19 pandemic.

Counterfeit, fake, adulterated or falsified drugs and pharmaceuticals, could be branded or generic drugs, excipients and active substances (in drugs and vaccines), medical supplies and devices, etc, intended to pass as the original. Counterfeits are always inferior in terms of quality, safety and efficacy compared to the original pharmaceuticals, and subsequently, they pose an unpredictable risk to public health and lead to loss of confidence in medicines, healthcare providers, and health systems. In the decades before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, a constant trend of increased trafficking was reported. However, the pandemic created a combination of public health emergency, economic distress, and misinformation-driven panic that made problematic the access and supply of high quality essential medicines and health products, and pushed consumers and vendors even more towards counterfeit pharmaceuticals. This contribution aims to review the trends in counterfeit drugs and pharmaceuticals trafficking, the health impact of their use, as well as, measures and actions implemented to restrict their proliferation, before and during COVID-19 pandemic; the relative recommendations, the expressed perspectives and the existing limitations are thoroughly discussed.

Modeling Postmortem Ethanol Production/Insights into the Origin of Higher Alcohols.

The forensic toxicologist is challenged to provide scientific evidence to distinguish the source of ethanol (antemortem ingestion or microbial production) determined in the postmortem blood and to properly interpret the relevant blood alcohol concentration (BAC) results, in regard to ethanol levels at death and subsequent behavioral impairment of the person at the time of death. Higher alcohols (1-propanol, 1-butanol, isobutanol, 2-methyl-1-butanol (isoamyl-alcohol), and 3-methyl-2-butanol (amyl-alcohol)) are among the volatile compounds that are often detected in postmortem specimens and have been correlated with putrefaction and microbial activity. This brief review investigates the role of the higher alcohols as biomarkers of postmortem, microbial ethanol production, notably, regarding the modeling of postmortem ethanol production. Main conclusions of this contribution are, firstly, that the higher alcohols are qualitative and quantitative indicators of microbial ethanol production, and, secondly that the respective models of microbial ethanol production are tools offering additional data to interpret properly the origin of the ethanol concentrations measured in postmortem cases. More studies are needed to clarify current uncertainties about the origin of higher alcohols in postmortem specimens.

Hair analysis for New Psychoactive Substances (NPS): Still far from becoming the tool to study NPS spread in the community?

In this review article, we performed an overview of extraction and chromatographic analysis methods of NPS in hair from 2007 to 2021, evaluating the limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), limit of reporting (LOR), and limit of identification (LOI) values reported for each NPS. Our review aimed to highlight the limitations of modern hair analytical techniques, and the prerequisites for the proper evaluation and use of analytical results in relation to the objectives of NPS hair analysis. In the selected studies the detection of a total of 280 NPS was reported. The detected NPS belonged to seven classes: synthetic cannabinoids with 109 different substances, synthetic opioids with 58, cathinones with 50, phenethylamines with 34, other NPS with 15, tryptamines with ten, and piperazines with four substances. The NPS hair analysis of real forensic/ clinical cases reported the detection of only 80 NPS (out of the 280 targeted), in significantly higher levels than the respective LODs. The analytical protocols reviewed herein for NPS hair analysis showed continuously growing trends to identify as many NPS as possible; the extraction methods seem to have a limited potential to improve, while the various mass spectroscopic techniques and relevant instrumentation provide an enormous field for development and application. Hair is a biological indicator of the past chronic, sub-chronic, and, even, in certain cases, acute exposure to xenobiotics. Therefore, future research in the field could progress NPS hair analysis and aim the monitoring of NPS expansion and extent of use in the community.

Modeling microbial ethanol production by S. aureus, K. pneumoniae, and E. faecalis under aerobic/anaerobic conditions - applicability to laboratory cultures and real postmortem cases.

A quite intriguing subject being intensively researched in the forensic toxicology field is the source of postmortem determined blood ethanol concentration: antemortem ingestion or postmortem microbial production. Our previous research on microbial ethanol production has reported a quantitative relationship between the ethanol and the higher alcohols and 1-butanol produced by Escherichia coli, Clostridium perfrigens, and Clostridium sporogenes. In this contribution, we continue our research reporting on the following: (i) the patterns of ethanol, higher alcohols, and 1-butanol production by the microbes Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, and Enterococcus faecalis (all being aerobic/facultative anaerobic species, common corpse's colonizers, and ethanol producers), under controlled laboratory conditions, (ii) the mathematical modeling, with simple mathematical equations, of the correlation between ethanol concentration and the other studied alcohols' concentrations, by performing multiple linear regression analysis of the results, and (iii) the applicability of the constructed models in microbial cultures developed under different temperature than that used to build the models, in denatured blood cultures and in real postmortem cases. The aforementioned alcohols were proved to be all indicators of ethanol production, both in qualitative and quantitative terms. 1-Propanol was the most significant alcohol in modeling microbial ethanol production, followed by methyl-butanol. The K. pneumoniae's models achieved the best scoring in applicability (E < 40%) compared to the S. aureus and E. faecalis models, both at laboratory microbial cultures at 37 °C and real postmortem cases. Overall, a noteworthy accuracy in estimating the microbial ethanol in cultures and autopsy blood is achieved by the employed simple linear models.

Modeling postmortem ethanol production by C. albicans: Experimental study and multivariate evaluation.

In previous research, we modeled the ethanol production by certain bacteria under controlled experimental conditions in an attempt to quantify the production of microbial postmortem ethanol in cases where other alcohols were co-detected. This contribution on the modeling of postmortem ethanol production by Candida albicans is complementary to these previous studies. Τhis work aimed to study ethanol, higher alcohols (1-propanol, isobutanol, 2-methyl-1-butanol and 3-methyl-1-butanol), and 1-butanol production by Candida albicans: (i) in different culture media (Brain Heart Infusion, BHI and, Sabouraud Dextrose Broth, SDB), (ii) under mixed aerobic/anaerobic or strict anaerobic conditions, and (iii) at different temperatures (37 °C, 25 °C and, 4 °C), and develop simple mathematical models, resulted from fungal cultures at 25 °C, to predict the microbially produced ethanol in correlation with the other alcohols. The applicability of the models was tested in the C. albicans cultures in BHI and SDB media at 37 °C, in denatured human blood at 25 °C, acidic and neutral with different concentrations of additional glucose, in acidic denatured blood diluted with dextrose solution and in blood from autopsy cases. The received results indicated that the C. albicans models could apply in cases where yeasts have been activated in blood with elevated glucose levels. Overall, the in vitro ethanol production by C. albicans in blood depended on temperature, time, glucose (or carbohydrate) content, pH of the medium and endogenous changes in the medium composition through time. Our results showed that methyl-butanol is the most significant indicator of fungal ethanol production, followed by the equally important isobutanol and 1-propanol in qualitative and quantitative terms.

The analysis of 132 novel psychoactive substances in human hair using a single step extraction by tandem LC/MS.

A rapid LC-MS/MS method for the targeted screening of 132 NPS in hair is described. Drugs include cathinones and synthetic cannabinoids, as well as amphetamine-type stimulants, piperazines and other hallucinogenic compounds. This method utilizes hair pulverization in acidified methanol followed by analysis using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem MS. The limit of detection varied from 0.001 to 0.1ng/mg hair among the various analytes. The method was validated in terms of sensitivity, selectivity, repeatability and stability. The limit of reporting was set at 0.1ng/mg of hair. The method was successfully applied to 23 medico-legal cases where NPS were detected in blood or where NPS use was suspected. The identified NPS included acetyl fentanyl, 25C-NBOMe, MDPV, PB-22 and AB-FUBINACA, allowing hair to be used where historical or retrospective information on use of NPS is sought. This technique has proven to be efficient for the one step extraction from hair of different classes of NPS in routine toxicological investigations; from unstable and volatile compounds, such as most of the cathinones, to hydrophobic compounds such as synthetic cannabinoids.

Changes in the cytokine profile in first-episode, drug-naïve patients with psychosis after short-term antipsychotic treatment.

An increasing body of evidence suggests that antipsychotic medication can cause immunological changes that could be attributed to the amelioration of psychotic symptoms or the metabolic side effects of the drugs. So far, the results of the studies remain controversial. Our aim was to compare the levels of interleukin (IL) IL-2, IL-6 and transforming growth factor-ß2 (TGF-ß2) in drug-naïve, first-episode patients with psychosis before and after six weeks of antipsychotic medication. Thirty-nine first-episode patients with psychosis were enrolled in the study. Serum levels of IL-2, IL-6 and TGF-ß2 were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) before and six weeks after the initiation of antipsychotics. In addition, clinical psychopathology was assessed using Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) before and after treatment. Serum levels of IL-2 were significantly increased six weeks after the initiation of antipsychotic treatment (p <0.001) while TGF-ß2 levels were decreased (p <0.001). IL-6 levels were overall increased (p <0.004), but this occurred in a non-linear way. These findings, although preliminary, provide further evidence that antipsychotic treatment in patients with psychosis may be correlated with immunological changes but further research is needed.

Poisoning suicide with ingestion of the pyrethroids alpha-cypermethrin and deltamethrin and the antidepressant mirtazapine: A case report.

This case report describes a death attributed to the intake of the pyrethroid insecticides, alpha-cypermethrin and deltamethrin, and the antidepressant mirtazapine. The autopsy findings showed absence of external traumatic injuries and internal generalized visceral congestion, edema and cyanosis. The toxicological results revealed the presence of a toxic concentration of mirtazapine (12.5mg/L and 10.7mg/L in blood and urine, respectively) and high concentrations of pyrethroids (2.46mg/L alpha-cypermethrin and 2.40mg/L deltamethrin in blood, and 0.41mg/L alpha-cypermethrin and 0.46mg/L deltamethrin in urine, respectively). Blood ethanol concentration was 0.75g/L. All the evidence - from autopsy, police investigation and toxicology - was consistent with the intentional self-harm of the deceased. The current case was determined and recorded as a poisoning suicide. Cause of death of the deceased was reported as the synergistic toxicity of the ingested pyrethroids and mirtazapine. The presence of a significant blood ethanol concentration was considered a secondary contributory factor to the fatal outcome. The case presented herein is the first death attributed to poisoning from ingestion of pyrethroids in combination with mirtazapine, with the intention of the victim to cause self-harm, with corresponding toxicology results.

Elevated levels of Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) in drug-naïve patients with psychosis.

Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) plays an important role in neurogenesis and synaptogenesis and may be implicated in schizophrenia, although data so far have been inconclusive. The aim of our study was to compare levels of IGF-1 in drug-naïve patients with a first episode of schizophrenia and related disorders with matched healthy controls. Forty drug naïve first-episode patients with schizophrenia and related disorders and forty healthy subjects matched for age, gender, body mass index (BMI) and smoking status were enrolled in the study. Serum levels of IGF-1 for each sample were measured in duplicate by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method using human IGF-1. The median IGF-1 levels were significantly higher in drug-naive patients with psychosis compared to healthy controls (109.66ng/ml vs. 86.96ng/ml, respectively p=0.039). Multiple regression analysis revealed that differences in serum IGF-1 values were independent of glucose metabolism (fasting glucose, fasting insulin, insulin resistance) and cortisol. These results show that IGF-1 may be implicated in the pathophysiology of psychosis but confirmation is needed from other studies.

Determination of clozapine, and five antidepressants in human plasma, serum and whole blood by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry: A simple tool for clinical and postmortem toxicological analysis.

In this study, we describe a simple and rapid method for the determination of the antipsychotic drug clozapine and five commonly co-administered antidepressants - bupropion, mirtazapine, sertraline, clomipramine and citalopram - in serum, plasma and whole blood. Sample preparation includes solid phase extraction of analytes and determination of drug concentrations by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry without any derivatization steps. The method was fully validated according to international criteria and can be successfully applied for routine analyses. Correlation coefficients of calibration curves for the tested drugs in the three specimens were in the range 0.9977-0.9999. Intra-day and inter-day precisions ranged from 0.81-7.85% and 3.60-12.91% respectively for the studied analytes and matrices. Recoveries were satisfactory for different concentrations of each drug in each specimen allowing accurate determinations in the range from sub-therapeutic to toxic levels. The presented method shows acceptable sensitivity, linearity in wide concentration ranges (sub-therapeutic, therapeutic, supra-therapeutic/toxic levels), it is simple and rapid and it is applicable for qualitative and quantitative routine toxicological analyses of clinical and postmortem cases.

A review of genetic alterations in the serotonin pathway and their correlation with psychotic diseases and response to atypical antipsychotics.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that plays a predominant role in mood regulation. The importance of the serotonin pathway in controlling behavior and mental status is well recognized. All the serotonin elements - serotonin receptors, serotonin transporter, tryptophan hydroxylase and monoamine oxidase proteins - can show alterations in terms of mRNA or protein levels and protein sequence, in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Additionally, when examining the genes sequences of all serotonin elements, several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been found to be more prevalent in schizophrenic or bipolar patients than in healthy individuals. Several of these alterations have been associated either with different phenotypes between patients and healthy individuals or with the response of psychiatric patients to the treatment with atypical antipsychotics. The complex pattern of genetic diversity within the serotonin pathway hampers efforts to identify the key variations contributing to an individual's susceptibility to the disease. In this review article, we summarize all genetic alterations found across the serotonin pathway, we provide information on whether and how they affect schizophrenia or bipolar disorder phenotypes, and, on the contribution of familial relationships on their detection frequencies. Furthermore, we provide evidence on whether and how specific gene polymorphisms affect the outcome of schizophrenic or bipolar patients of different ethnic groups, in response to treatment with atypical antipsychotics. All data are discussed thoroughly, providing prospective for future studies.

Residues of selected polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and organochlorine pesticides (OCP) in postmortem lungs from Epirus, northwestern Greece.

Organochlorine (OC) pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) are compounds characterized as persistent organic pollutants (POP) in the environment. These compounds are monitored globally since they enter the human body and accumulate in tissues, resulting in consequent adverse effects. In this study concentrations of selected OC compounds were determined in human autopsy lungs from Epirus, a relatively restricted region in northwestern Greece. This is the first epidemiologic study from Greece reporting on monitoring of environmental pollutants in human autopsy material. Thirty lungs collected from that number of autopsy cases were analyzed: 19 males and 11 females. The age range was 14-91 yr (mean ± SD = 61.8 ± 22.5 yr). Twenty-two cases (73%) were positive for at least one pollutant and eight cases were negative (27%). PCB were the most abundant class of contaminants, detected in 15 out of the 30 cases (50%). Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCH) were second and third in abundance with 9 (30%) and 8 (27%) positive cases, respectively. The frequency of detection showed a tendency to increase with age of individuals. The patterns of OC found in human autopsy lungs were similar to those reported previously for other human specimens. Our results demonstrated a similar trend in contamination sources and distribution has occurred in western Greece as noted globally.

Modeling microbial ethanol production by E. coli under aerobic/anaerobic conditions: applicability to real postmortem cases and to postmortem blood derived microbial cultures.

The mathematical modeling of the microbial ethanol production under strict anaerobic experimental conditions for some bacterial species has been proposed by our research group as the first approximation to the quantification of the microbial ethanol production in cases where other alcohols were produced simultaneously with ethanol. The present study aims to: (i) study the microbial ethanol production by Escherichia coli under controlled aerobic/anaerobic conditions; (ii) model the correlation between the microbial produced ethanol and the other higher alcohols; and (iii) test their applicability in: (a) real postmortem cases that had positive BACs (>0.10 g/L) and co-detection of higher alcohols and 1-butanol during the original ethanol analysis and (b) postmortem blood derived microbial cultures under aerobic/anaerobic controlled experimental conditions. The statistical evaluation of the results revealed that the formulated models were presumably correlated to 1-propanol and 1-butanol which were recognized as the most significant descriptors of the modeling process. The significance of 1-propanol and 1-butanol as descriptors was so powerful that they could be used as the only independent variables to create a simple and satisfactory model. The current models showed a potential for application to estimate microbial ethanol - within an acceptable standard error - in various tested cases where ethanol and other alcohols have been produced from different microbes.

Fatal intoxications in a forensic autopsy material from Epirus, Greece, during the period 1998-2010.

In this retrospective study, we report the epidemiological characteristics of all poisoning deaths in Epirus, Greece, from 1998 to 2010; we present the toxicological findings and the statistical evaluation of the results. This is the first detailed scientific report on all the officially certified poisoning deaths concerning part of the Greek population. A total of 126 poisoning fatalities were recorded, 67 of them being mono-intoxications (53.2%). The cause of poisoning was as follows: drugs of abuse (60%); carbon monoxide (19.8%); pesticides (9.5%); corrosives (4.8%); pharmaceuticals (4.8%); and spider bite (0.8%). The most frequently detected poisonous substances were as follows: heroin (65 cases), ethanol (55), benzodiazepines (42), carbon monoxide (25), cocaine (17), cannabinoids (17) and pesticides (12). Increasing tendency in poisoning death rates was recorded, due to an increase in accidental poisoning deaths attributed mainly to drugs of abuse (total, accidental, and drugs-of-abuse poisoning death rates per 100,000 inhabitants per year were 1.87, 1.19, and 0.79, respectively, in the period 1998-2002 and 3.97, 3.41, and 2.55, respectively, in the period 2007-2010).

Unusual death due to a bleeding from a varicose vein: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Varicose veins are a common entity presenting a worldwide distribution. Although they are usually benign, sometimes are proved to be a threatening condition. Massive hemorrhage is an unusual complication of this common venous pathology that demands immediate medical intervention. CASE PRESENTATION: We present a case of a 66-year-old woman found dead in her house surrounded by a large quantity of blood. Autopsy revealed a 7 mm ulcer on the internal surface of the left lower leg communicating with a varicose vein, signs of exsanguinations and liver cirrhosis. Toxicological analysis was negative. CONCLUSION: Massive hemorrhage from a ruptured varicosity is a severe medical emergency. Awareness of the risk of massive hemorrhage may provoke preventive treatment to be undertaken so as terminal loss of consciousness and a subsequent unattended death to be averted.

Determination of organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in post-mortem human lung by matrix solid-phase dispersion with the aid of response surface methodology and desirability function.

A matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) method for the simultaneous determination of 20 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) (aldrin, endrin, dieldrin, α-BHC, ß-BHC, γ-BHC, δ-BHC, α-chlordane, γ-chlordane, p,p'-DDE, p,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDD, endosulfan I, endosulfan II, endosulfan sulfate, endrin aldehyde, heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, endrin ketone and methoxychlor) and six polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners (PCB 28, 52, 101, 138, 153 and 180) in post-mortem human lung has been developed and validated. Response surface methodology (RSM) and desirability function were employed to optimize the extraction conditions of MSPD. Extraction was carried out using Florisil (2.0 g) as the sorbent material as well as clean-up adsorbent (1.5401 g), n-hexane:dichloromethane (11:89, v/v) as the eluting solvent (15.45 mL) and Na2SO4 (2.0 g) as dehydrating agent. Determination and quantification of OCPs and PCBs residues were carried out using a gas chromatograph equipped with an electron capture detector (GC-ECD). A mass spectrometric detector (GC-MS) in the selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode was also used for confirmation purposes. Method detection limits by GC-MS ranged from 0.42 to 0.87 ng g⁻¹ and 0.51 to 1.35 ng g⁻¹, for OCPs and PCBs, respectively. Lower detection limits were calculated for GC-ECD ranging between 0.15-0.30 ng g⁻¹ and 0.18-0.48 ng g⁻¹, respectively. Relative standard deviations did not exceed 9%. Analytes provided recoveries ranging from 65% to 106%. The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of lung tissues from six autopsy cases.