As the first and most important aim of the different cannabis preparations is to guarantee therapeutic continuity in treated individuals, a strictly standardized preparation protocol is necessary to assure the availability of a homogeneous product of defined stability.

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Method development is concluded by an optimization process after which the new method is subject to method validation.

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A gas chromatography method with mass spectrometric detection is described for the determination of Salvinorin A, the main active ingredient of the hallucinogenic mint Salvia divinorum. The method was validated in plasma, urine, saliva and sweat using 17-alpha-methyltestosterone as internal standard. The analytes were extracted from biological matrices with chloroform/isopropanol (9:1, v/v). Chromatography was performed on a 5% phenyl methyl silicone capillary column and analytes were determined in the selected ion monitoring mode. The method was validated over the concentration range 0.015-5 microg/mL plasma, urine and saliva and 0.01-5 microg/patch in the case of sweat. Mean recoveries ranged between 77.1 and 92.7% for Salvinorin A in different biological matrices, with precision and accuracy always better than 15%. The method was applied to the analysis of urine, saliva and sweat from two consumers after smoking 75 mg plant leaves to verify the presence of the active ingredient of S. divinorum in human biological fluids as a biomarker of plant consumption. Salvinorin A was detected in urine (2.4 and 10.9 ng/mL) and saliva (11.1 and 25.0 ng/mL), but not in sweat patches from consumers.