European funding allows further research into fingerprint drug screening
Fingerprint drug screening technique currently being developed for monitoring treatment regimes in patients undergoing opioid substitution treatment.
In a collaboration between the UK and Finland, a team of researchers plan to trial the use of fingerprint drug screening for use during opioid substitution treatment (OST). A grant from European funding body, Eurostars, has allowed the furthering of this research, led by researchers from UK-based Intelligent Fingerprinting Ltd (Norwich, UK), the University of Eastern Finland (Kuopio, Finland), and Finnish company Addoz Oy (Forssa, Finland).
OST involves the administration of opioid substitutes, such as buphrenorphone or methadone, to patients with opioid dependence. Such patients must be monitored closely to analyze adherence to the OST programme. Traditionally, this would be achieved by urine sample analysis.
Speaking to Bioanalysis Zone, Paul Yates, from Intelligent Fingerprinting Ltd, explained that the main advantage of a fingerprint drug screening system over more conventional analytical methods is that fingerprint samples “are completely non-invasive compared with the conventional drug screening methods that require collection of body fluids (e.g., blood, urine, saliva) or hair.” He continued, explaining this significance, “They are therefore easier and more dignified to collect from the perspective of the person being tested, and don’t require specialist collectors or prepared collection areas and so provide a much more efficient collection method.”
The portable tool the team is developing analyzes sweat from the patient’s fingerprint, and Yates envisages results to be delivered “in a matter of minutes”. The Eurostars funding will allow the researchers to collect samples from patient volunteers at Kuopio University Hosptial (Finland) and use these to further develop the system.
The funding will also be used on future projects, as outlined by Yates, “We will also investigate methods of remote dispensing of opioid substitution medication that will allow us to assess the possibilities of reducing the need for patients to frequently attend the clinic. The pharmacokinetics of opioid substitution medication will also be investigated through analysis of fingerprints collected at specific time intervals following administration of a known dosage, the results of which will allow better understanding of patient compliance with their treatment plans.”
Looking to the future, Yates predicts that fingerprint-based diagnostics will “revolutionize drug screening over the next 5–10 years.” He continued, “The convenience of non invasive tests combined with the ability to screen for a wide range of metabolites and biomarkers from within fingerprint sweat offer other important opportunities in addition to drug screening, in areas such as healthcare, forensic science, and security, including border control.”
