READ: Alcohol and Other Toxins

Role of the Toxicologist

A toxicologist must identify one of thousands of drugs and poisons in given samples. This is often difficult given that they must find nanogram to microgram quantities of the toxin distributed throughout an entire body! In addition, a toxicologist is not always looking for exact chemicals, but for metabolites of desired chemicals. An example of this is Heroin, which converts into a specific type of morphine metabolite within seconds of administration. The metabolites act as a "tracer" for the drug and can be used to reliably indicate that a person has used that drug. In addition to determining which substances are present in the body, a toxicologist must also determine the amount of the substance and the effect that may have had on the body.

 Toxicologists are an important part of Forensic investigations. They are consulted on toxicology evidence to determine if toxins or drugs contributed to a crime or death. Many don't realize that toxicologists actually consult on many other types of criminal cases outside of death investigations. Important pieces of evidence and drug induced behavior in these cases can be evaluated by a toxicologist to provide crucial clues in a case. For example, a Forensic toxicologist may be able to provide testimony or a description of the level of impairment a person may have experienced under the influence of a particular level of drugs or alcohol while driving a car, flying a plane, navigating a ship or operating other heavy machinery. They might also be asked to testify in a case where a sexual assault took place while the victim was under the influence of a date rape drug. Still another example of the role of toxicologists is to determine if illegal drug use is taking place in upper level pro sports or olympic sporting events. Forensic toxicologists analyze samples from the athletes to determine if they are using any of the drugs on the list of banned substances for their particular sport such as steroids, stimulants and diuretics. An athlete found to be using any of the banned substances may be stripped of awards, medals or other titles within the sport. A famous example of this is that of cyclist, Lance Armstrong, who was found to be using several banned substances in order to win his 7 Tour de France titles. He was later stripped of all seven titles due to the doping scandal.

Georgia Virtual, Forensic Toxicology, CC BY-NC-SA 3.0