A team of researchers from the UK and the Netherlands have developed a technique to detect cocaine abuse through a single fingerprint. According to the research, which was published in the journal Analyst, “cocaine abuse can be tested by non-invasive techniques by detecting excreted metabolites – benzoylecgonine and methylecgonine – resulting from abuse of drugs. These chemicals are found in fingerprint residue, which the researchers detected using analytical chemistry technique known as ambient mass spectrometry.”
Lead author Dr. Melanie Bailey of the University of Surrey said, “The beauty of this method is that, not only is it non-invasive and more hygienic than testing blood or saliva, it can’t be faked,” added Dr Bailey. “By the very nature of the test, the identity of the subject is captured within the fingerprint ridge detail itself.”
