Banca de DEFESA: ANA FLÁVIA BARBOSA DE OLIVEIRA

Uma banca de DEFESA de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : ANA FLÁVIA BARBOSA DE OLIVEIRA
DATE: 13/12/2024
TIME: 14:00
LOCAL: Em ambiente virtual (Google meet)
TITLE:

INVESTIGATION OF THE CONSUMPTION OF PSYCHOACTIVE DRUGS IN THE RECIFE AND OLINDA CARNIVAL THROUGH SEWAGE EPIDEMIOLOGY

KEY WORDS:

Wastewater-based epidemiology, method development, psychoactive drugs, solid-phase extraction, gas chromatography, mass spectrometry.

PAGES: 92
BIG AREA: Ciências Exatas e da Terra
AREA: Química
SUBÁREA: Química Analítica
SPECIALTY: Análise de Traços e Química Ambiental
SUMMARY:

The consumption of psychoactive drugs has significantly increased in recent years, causing impacts on the social, economic, and public health spheres. Monitoring this consumption is essential and has traditionally been done through population surveys combined with medical and criminal statistics. However, these approaches have limitations, such as high costs and low accuracy. In this context, wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) emerges as an efficient, rapid, and cost-effective alternative to conventional methods. Based on this, the objective of this study was to provide a new perspective on psychoactive drug consumption in the Metropolitan Region of Recife (RMR) by developing a multi-analyte method using WBE, combining solid-phase extraction (SPE) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to monitor six psychoactive drugs in 28 raw sewage samples. The samples were collected during Carnival 2023 – the largest in Brazil – and during a reference week, at sewage treatment plants in the cities of Recife and Olinda, Brazil. The SPE conditions were optimized using a 2³ full factorial design, identifying the sample volume as the critical factor. The method was validated for linearity, limit of quantification, precision, and accuracy, demonstrating its effectiveness for monitoring illicit drugs. Drug consumption in the two cities followed the trend: cannabis > cocaine > ecstasy > methamphetamine. Cannabis, in particular, was the most consumed drug, with a weekly average consumption of 8,575 mg day^-1 1000 inhabitants^-1 in Recife and 16,978 mg day^-1 1000 inhabitants^-1 in Olinda during Carnival. In contrast, methamphetamine was the least consumed, detected only during Carnival, highlighting its recreational use. Moreover, the use of stimulant drugs more than doubled during Carnival compared to the reference week, showing the significant impact of festivities on drug consumption patterns. Statistical analysis allowed distinguishing collection periods and highlighting the main consumption trends, showing that Saturday was the day with the highest drug consumption. This study provides valuable information about drug use patterns in the RMR and demonstrates the effectiveness of WBE for monitoring illicit substance consumption, with monitoring efficacy in both typical weeks and festive events.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - JANDYSON MACHADO SANTOS
Interno - ANDRE FERNANDO LAVORANTE
Interno - MARCILIO MARTINS DE MORAES
Externa à Instituição - GIOVANA ANCESKI BATAGLION - UFAM
Externa à Instituição - IGNES REGINA DOS SANTOS