An industrial chemical is showing up in fentanyl in the U.S., troubling scientists

UCLA project director Ruby Romero, left, and project manager Caitlin Molina demonstrate how they test street drugs. “We have no idea just how many people have been exposed,” Godvin said, but if the high prevalence among drug samples tested so far is any indication, “that translates to tens of thousands of fentanyl users being exposed to BTEMPS, sometimes at very high volume.” The findings were publicly released as a preprint — research that has not been peer reviewed — on the website of Drug Checking Los Angeles and on medRxiv, a website where scientists share preliminary findings. One told researchers that “it smelled so bad I could barely smoke it.” The UCLA and NIST researchers warned that “with such a sudden and sustained prevalence in the drug supply, users are at risk of repeated, ongoing exposures, which may compound health effects.” A 35-year-old man in Los Angeles said that in recent months, he had noticed a rubbery or synthetic taste in the fentanyl he used. UCLA assistant professor Chelsea Shover added that the team had found BTMPS for sale on online platforms like Amazon and Alibaba with similar wording to what Chinese chemical companies had used in the past to market to fentanyl producers, with sellers touting their “experience getting through Mexican customs.” “This is clearly implying that this is to be used to make illicit drugs,” Shover said. The UNC Street Drug Analysis Lab likewise said that much remains unknown at this point, including whether BTMPS poses an overdose risk, although the lab cautions that “EVERY substance at some volume will be toxic.” Dasgupta said the detection of BTMPS represents the first example of the burgeoning network of drug checking programs working together to find a substance “before any health authorities or any law enforcement did.” Godvin said that “just a few years ago, we wouldn’t have even known about this” and urged Angelenos to get drugs analyzed through Drug Checking Los Angeles if they are able.