Over the past decade, the emergence of new psychotropic substances (NPS) has become a rapidly evolving global concern, posing significant risks to public health and presenting challenges for law enforcement agencies. These substances, continually updated to circumvent legal restrictions, are often categorized into groups such as phenethylamines, synthetic cathinones, and synthetic cannabinoids. Among the NPS, the NBOMe and NBOH compounds stand out as psychoactive drugs derived from phenethylamines, known for their hallucinogenic effects. Notably, 25B-NBOH (also recognized as 2C-B-NBOH or NBOH-2C-B) represents a derivative of the phenethylamine hallucinogen 2C-B and has been illicitly sold as a designer drug. Specifically, 25B-NBOH, a novel synthetic hallucinogen, shares structural similarities with 25B-NBOMe and other analogues bearing the "NBOH" and "NBOMe" nomenclatures. Notably, our laboratory detected 25B-NBOH for the first time in Sri Lanka in late 2020, though its presence had been noted as early as June 2016 in Europe.
The concurrent use of 25B-NBOH with other substances, particularly stimulants like caffeine or MDMA, escalates the risk of adverse and potentially fatal effects. Combining 25B-NBOH with stimulants can amplify central nervous system activity, leading to heightened blood pressure and an increased risk of stroke and heart attack
The identification of NBOH drugs in seized blotter papers in Sri Lanka, initially suspected to contain Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), underscores the critical need for a robust qualitative method to accurately identify the substances present. Given that these blotter papers did not contain LSD or any other substances specified in Sri Lanka's Narcotic Drug Act or the Psychotropic Substances Act, it becomes imperative to develop a reliable method for substance identification. Invest in the development of analytical methods, such as chromatographic techniques (e.g., liquid chromatography or gas chromatography) coupled with mass spectrometry, which can provide accurate and specific identification of substances present in seized materials.