Drug Primer: 4-ANPP

By Kevin Shanks, D-ABFT-FT  This post has been updated since its original posting Apr 7, 2022. The presence of fentanyl in the street drug supply has rapidly exploded throughout the United States since approximately 2014. Drug overdose deaths have increased as well...

Pharmacodynamics

By Kevin Shanks, D-ABFT-FT Pharmacodynamics (PD) is the study of the effect of substances on the body.  The word is derived from Greek – Pharmakon and dynamikos which means “force” or “power”. PD includes concepts such as receptor affinity, receptor activity, and...

Reference Ranges

By Kevin Shanks, D-ABFT-FT Many forensic toxicology tests are qualitative and provide a positive-negative or present-not detected result. The interpretation of those results is relatively simple. A substance is there or it is not. But, a quantitative test with a...

Shipping Best Practices

By Matt Zollman, Director of Operations and Product Management From time to time, circumstances such as weather or pandemics can cause shipment delays.  Here are some Best Practices to keep in mind as you prepare and track your packages: Submissions: Submit smaller,...

Pharmacokinetics

By Kevin Shanks, D-ABFT-FT Pharmacokinetics (PK) is the study of what the body does to a substance. The word is derived from Greek – Pharmakon which means “drug” and kinetikos which means “moving”. PK consists of four areas – absorption, distribution, metabolism, and...