{"id":140544,"date":"2020-12-24T01:00:40","date_gmt":"2020-12-23T22:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/how-breaking-down-a-medicine-to-its-atomic-parts-can-help-fight-counterfeits\/"},"modified":"2020-12-24T01:00:40","modified_gmt":"2020-12-23T22:00:40","slug":"how-breaking-down-a-medicine-to-its-atomic-parts-can-help-fight-counterfeits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-breaking-down-a-medicine-to-its-atomic-parts-can-help-fight-counterfeits\/","title":{"rendered":"#How breaking down a medicine to its atomic parts can help fight counterfeits"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4e5f6601c9f\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4e5f6601c9f\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-breaking-down-a-medicine-to-its-atomic-parts-can-help-fight-counterfeits\/#Health_is_a_fundamental_right\" >Health is a fundamental right<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-breaking-down-a-medicine-to-its-atomic-parts-can-help-fight-counterfeits\/#A_global_police_tool_for_a_global_threat\" >A global police tool for a global threat<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-breaking-down-a-medicine-to-its-atomic-parts-can-help-fight-counterfeits\/#More_criminal_activities_to_fight\" >More criminal activities to fight<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;<strong>#How breaking down a medicine to its atomic parts can help fight counterfeits<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n                            The trafficking of counterfeit and illegal medicines is a growing global challenge, with many criminal organizations involved and huge amounts of cash changing hands. In our <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.talanta.2020.121829\">recent research<\/a>, we propose a new method for testing and tracing illegal counterfeit medicines. The solution is <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.talanta.2020.121829\">nuclear<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Counterfeit medicines are attractive to criminals. They have high-profit margins, with relatively low risks in terms of legal consequences. It is also quite easy to deceive consumers into believing that illegal products are genuine or convince them that they are buying an affordable and effective \u201calternative.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The situation is not expected to improve. In fact, Interpol has already seen a rise in fake medical products related to the outbreak of the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.unodc.org\/documents\/data-and-analysis\/covid\/COVID-19_research_brief_trafficking_medical_products.pdf\">COVID-19 disease<\/a>. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.interpol.int\/en\/News-and-Events\/News\/2020\/Global-operation-sees-a-rise-in-fake-medical-products-related-to-COVID-19\">Operation Pangea XIII<\/a> seized US$14m (\u00a310.4m) worth of counterfeit face masks, sub-standard hand sanitizers, and unauthorized antiviral pharmaceutical products in March 2020. They arrested 121 people, and more than 2,500 websites were taken offline.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Health_is_a_fundamental_right\"><\/span>Health is a fundamental right<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>From a health perspective, the main problem with illegal medicines is that they are potentially very harmful. Previous experiences with the chemical analysis of these products showed us that what is reported on the label is rarely what the product contains. Illicit medicines often contain the wrong amount of active ingredient. And the undeclared ingredients they contain can lead to serious health problems. Some fake medicines have been found to contain <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.interpol.int\/Crimes\/Illicit-goods\/Shop-safely\/Fake-medicines\">mercury, arsenic, rat poison, and cement<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>When illegal medicines are found, they need to be tested, and rapid early warnings dispersed whenever there is a serious threat to public health. However, this is not the only priority: the way they are tested also needs to incorporate collecting information about the product\u2019s manufacturing and supply chain. This second need is vital for law enforcement agencies globally, for intelligence, investigation, and criminal prosecution.<\/p>\n<p>Creating \u201cextensive profiling\u201d methods that incorporate both of these needs is difficult. There are potentially a high number of ingredients in illegal products that are related to their manufacturing. A particularly serious issue is that sharing data across different forensic laboratories is very difficult. It is hard to standardize the techniques currently being used, so laboratories in the same country \u2013 let alone in different countries \u2013 struggle to create national or international collaborations. This leads to what is known as \u201clinkage blindness,\u201d which is the inability of law enforcement to connect similar unsolved crimes.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"A_global_police_tool_for_a_global_threat\"><\/span>A global police tool for a global threat<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>To effectively protect public health and allow criminal investigations, we cannot face global issues with local <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>roaches. Several laboratories must work together and comprehensive testing methods are needed, that aren\u2019t only trying to find possible toxic chemical substances, but also find and share information about where the seized materials came from, and how they were made.<\/p>\n<p>In this regard, we recently proposed a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.talanta.2020.121829\">new approach<\/a> that proved very promising. We got the idea from a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.fsisyn.2019.07.004\">previous study<\/a> carried out by one of the authors of this article. It involves a unique combination of nuclear analytical techniques, specifically ion beam analysis (IBA) and instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). The latter uses neutron and proton beams respectively, to analyze every ingredient in a particular illicit product of interest. It can then give us an extensive overview of their composition, down to atomic levels.<\/p>\n<p>The advantage of our approach is that it allows for fast characterization of the chemical nature of the illegal products. This includes an unprecedented assessment of their potential risk on people\u2019s health, as our method can provide early health warnings and the amount of each element identified can be directly measured. We also demonstrated that the data produced by different nuclear reactors can be effectively exchanged between laboratories all over the world.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"More_criminal_activities_to_fight\"><\/span>More criminal activities to fight<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Our research tested Viagra as it is the most widely counterfeited drug in the world. Due to lower production costs and high street value, it has larger profit margins than heroin. It also has a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.valisure.com\/blog\/valisure-notebook\/viagra-the-worlds-most-counterfeited-drug\/\">much lower risk<\/a> of legal consequences if anyone is caught trafficking it.<\/p>\n<p>Our research saw promising results when we were looking for the differences between counterfeit and original samples, and this was on samples from different laboratories. In particular, the approach was found to be very flexible and could be applied to lots of different products. These involve not only medicines but also supplements and foods, as well as illegal drugs. The approach is already tested in Italy to the illegal trafficking of cannabis, cocaine and heroin, which means it could be used to find links between drugs hauls around the world soon. Other laboratories around the world are collaborating and forming an international network.<\/p>\n<p>Today, the biggest challenge in stopping the trafficking of counterfeit medicines is implementing global methods that fight the latest threats as quickly as possible. Criminal organizations are dynamic and laboratories need to keep up. Fake chloroquine, an antimalarial medicine falsely believed to cure COVID-19, is already being sold <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.iracm.com\/en\/2020\/04\/cameroon-fake-chloroquine-treatment-discovered-cameroon\/\">in Cameroon<\/a> and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/enactafrica.org\/enact-observer\/how-covid-19-is-fuelling-the-trafficking-of-fake-chloroquine-in-senegal\">in Senegal<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>At a moment, where all eyes are on the subject of medicines and vaccines around the world, further research is pressingly vital \u2013 to effectively target global criminal organisations and protect public health worldwide.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;\" alt=\"The Conversation\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" class=\" lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/151112\/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic\" data-lazy=\"true\"\/><\/p>\n<p><em>This article by\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/francesco-saverio-romolo-1183035\">Francesco Saverio ROMOLO<\/a>, Expert for Forensic <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/sciencee\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"5\" title=\"Science\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Science<\/a>s at International Atomic Energy Agency, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/universita-degli-studi-di-bergamo-4979\">Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bergamo<\/a> and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/matteo-gallidabino-1143871\">Matteo Gallidabino<\/a>, Senior Lecturer in Forensic Science, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/northumbria-university-newcastle-821\">Northumbria University, Newcastle<\/a>\u00a0is republished from <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\">The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/black-market-meds-how-nuclear-analysis-can-fight-trafficking-of-counterfeit-medicines-151112\">original article<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/syndication\/2020\/12\/23\/how-breaking-down-a-medicine-to-its-atomic-parts-can-help-fight-counterfeits\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#How breaking down a medicine to its atomic parts can help fight counterfeits&#8221; The trafficking of counterfeit and illegal medicines is a growing global challenge, with many criminal organizations involved and huge amounts of cash changing hands. In our recent research, we propose a new method for testing and tracing illegal counterfeit medicines. The solution&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":140545,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/tnw?filter_last=1&fit=1280,640&url=https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2020\/12\/1-copy-40.jpg&signature=3cc379013ecee8f58d3f5ae737b889a3","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[75568,4998,71612,73157,72837,87616,5048],"class_list":["post-140544","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology","tag-supply-chain","tag-crime","tag-insights","tag-investigation","tag-laboratory","tag-law-enforcement-agency","tag-medicine"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/140544","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=140544"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/140544\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/140545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=140544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=140544"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=140544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}