Identification of LSD by AccuTOF™ LC/Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry

Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a psychoactive drug with a long history of abuse. It is one of the most difficult drugs of abuse to detect in urine since the parent drug is excreted at very low concentration. Less than 1% of the ingested LSD dose is eliminated unchanged [1]. Analysis is further complicated because the isomeric compound iso-LSD, N-n-propylamide (LAMPA), which is itself a controlled drug, has a virtually identical mass spectrum [2]. Several GC/MS or GC/MS/MS methods have been developed for confirmation of LSD in urine, but a tedious and unstable derivatization procedure is required. The use of LC/MS for the analysis of LSD does not require derivatization of the analytes, thus simplifying the procedure. This application note demonstrates the feasibility by using the AccuTOF™ LC/MS for identification of LSD and related compounds. Additional method development and validation may be required for routine analysis.