Fingerprints as New Drug-Detection Method
by James Mills
When law enforcement wants to screen a person for drug use, they usually must collect some kind of invasive physical sample from the suspect. Urine, blood, and hair are all common choices. Now drug use may soon be detectable from fingerprints alone.
For years, Min Jang, an assistant professor of forensic chemistry at Arizona State University, has been working on a process to detect drug metabolites in the trace amounts of sweat in human fingerprints. He brought his work to the forensic chemistry research lab in 2024 and has continued to refine it.
According to Jang, “latent fingerprints are made up of sweat secreted by sweat pores. When you analyze a drug that metabolizes, it contains inorganic and organic compounds from the metabolites of both the drug and the parent drug that are circulated through the bloodstream. Then they are secreted in multiple ways. Sweat is one of them.” The tiny amounts of human sweat (often invisible to the naked eye) can be placed through a mass spectrometer, which shoots charged particles at samples and develops a profile for them, based on molecular structure. So far, the process has successfully identified heroin and cocaine in test subjects.
Jang is working in concert with local drug rehab and addiction treatment facilities in Phoenix, Arizona, that are interested in verifying abstinence in their patients through a quicker and less invasive means. He also believes that the process could have applications far beyond those of criminal justice and rehab compliance. For example, people taking medications could benefit from a tool that detects blood plasma levels to maximize pharmaceutical effectiveness.
Jang’s groundbreaking work at Arizona State University is poised to revolutionize drug detection, offering a non-invasive, rapid alternative to traditional methods like urine or blood tests. By harnessing the trace sweat in fingerprints, this innovative technique not only promises to streamline screening in criminal justice and addiction treatment but also holds potential to optimize medication efficacy for countless patients. As Jang refines this technology in collaboration with Phoenix rehab facilities, its success could redefine forensic science, reduce stigma in drug monitoring, and pave the way for a future where a simple fingerprint reveals critical insights into health and behavior.
Source: forensicmag.com
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