ToxWipe-Oral K2™ On-Site Drugs of Abuse Testing Devices

San Diego, California, September 1, 2015 (Newswire.com) - Synthetic cannabis, more commonly known as “K2” or “Spice”, is a man-made designer drug that is made up of a mixture of herbs that have been pretreated or sprayed with synthetic cannabinoid compounds. K2 mimics the effects of THC and has gained recent widespread popularity, possibly as an alternative to marijuana. Synthetic cannabinoids act as cannabinoid receptor agonists, but they are structurally and chemically dissimilar to cannabinoids, which is why a rapid test that detects THC cannot detect K2. In addition, recent research has shown that synthetic cannabinoids can be up to 100-800 times more potent than THC due to structural and chemical differences. Such research sheds light on the importance of testing for K2 use, due to its considerable potential to cause harm to personal health and public safety.

Oranoxis Inc.has released the first rapid test for the qualitative detection of major synthetic cannabinoid parent drugs in human saliva. Onsite ToxWipe-Oral K2detects the most commonly used parent synthetic cannabinoids, JWH-018 and JWH-073, in human saliva samples.ToxWipe-Oral is easy-to-use, affordable, and results can be read in 10 minutes. The revolutionary design allows sample collection to be completed in seconds, and a sample sufficiency indicators shows a color change when a sufficient volume of saliva has been collected. Saliva testing is advantageous when compared to urine testing due to its non-invasiveness and convenience. Saliva testing can be performed routinely and repeatedly at any location and avoids urinary retention situations. A face-to-face sample collection can prevent specimen adulteration or dilution as well. 

Conventional methods that test saliva for K2 require employers and drug testing agencies to send saliva samples out for GC/MS or LC/MS laboratory analysis. GC/MS or LC/MS testing is costly, labor intensive, and has a long turn-around time for results. ToxWipe-Oral K2 provides a more rapid and inexpensive alternative to laboratory testing without sacrificing accuracy and reliability.

ToxWipe-Oral K2 utilizes a lateral flow immunoassay platform to test for K2 parent drugs, JWH-018 and JWH-073. To perform the test, simply swipe the thin absorbent tip of the device onto the donor’s tongue until the sample sufficiency indicator displays a green or light grey color. Then peel the cover off of the sealed buffer cavity of the cap and place the absorbent tip of the test device into that cavity.Results can be read at 10 minutes. A red colored line in the test and control regions indicate a negative result, while the absence of a line in the test region in addition to a red colored line in the control region indicates a positive result. The test device is disposable after use and has a shelf-life of 24 months.