Revolutionizing THC Testing: Detecting Cannabis With Just a Few Drops of Saliva

European universities have developed a new method for quickly and accurately detecting THC in small saliva samples.

This technique simplifies traditional processes into two main steps and utilizes mass spectrometry for rapid analysis. It represents a significant advancement in drug testing technology.

Cannabis is the most widely used illegal drug in Europe. It is estimated that around 8% of adults used cannabis in 2022. Widespread abuse of this substance has health consequences, and is viewed as an important social problem. A fundamental resource to control its use and avoid these health problems would be a quick, simple, non-invasive, and reliable form of analysis that uses a fluid that is easy to extract, such as saliva.

Innovative Saliva-Based Analysis
In order to expedite this type of analysis and make it effective in smaller saliva samples, the FQM-215 – Affordable and Sustainable Sample Preparation group at the University of Cordoba worked together with the GICAPC group at the University of Valencia to design a new analysis technique that simplifies processing of the sample and makes it possible to verify the presence of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) with only 0.25 mL of saliva.