Law Enforcement Articles

Drug Enforcement and DNA - The Green Revolution: Botanical Contributions to Forensics and Drug Enforcement

Drug enforcement is taking advantage of new plant molecular biology techniques, too. Often in drug seizures, identification of the seized substance is a problem, especially if the plant material is fragmented and dried.

A variety of methods are currently employed to identify Cannabis sativa L (marijuana). Marijuana can be identified by classical botanical characterization, especially if the type of cystolith hairs present on the leaves are used. However, presence of cystolith hairs is not a conclusive identification, since more than 80 plant species have similar cystolith hair morphology.

A chemical screening test called the Duquenois-Levine color test is frequently used in combination with cystolith hair observation as a method to identify Cannabis.

A positive Duquenois-Levine test for marijuana exhibits a purple color in the chloroform layer of the extracted plant material. As with many chemical screening tests, a faint color can be subjectively interpreted. Marijuana can also be identified by chromatographic methods that test for the presence of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other cannabinoids.
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