Two-trace two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2T2D-COS) combined with multivariate analysis for quality control of Cannabis sativa oil extracts: detection of synthetic cannabinoid adulteration and CBD discrimination by UV-Vis and ATR-FT-IR spectroscopy.

Mendoza D.; Baza A.; Gutierrez M.; Pérez G.; Cubillan N.; Ropero J. · Spectrochimica acta. Part A, Molecular and biomolecular spectroscopy · 2026

**Background & Methods** This analytical chemistry study evaluated two-trace two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2T2D-COS) combined with principal component analysis (PCA) as a quality control method for commercial Cannabis sativa oil extracts. Sixteen commercial oil samples were analyzed using HPLC-UV, UV-Vis spectroscopy, and ATR-FT-IR spectroscopy to detect synthetic cannabinoid adulteration (MDMB-4en-PINACA) and discriminate CBD concentrations in full-spectrum cannabis oils. **Key Findings** • Only 31.2% of commercial cannabis oil samples met their declared CBD concentration within ±10% tolerance, indicating widespread mislabeling or quality control failures in commercial products. • UV-Vis 2T2D-COS asynchronous mapping successfully resolved overlapping spectral contributions of CBD and the synthetic cannabinoid MDMB-4en-PINACA in complex lipid matrices, with PCA applied to 2D maps (PCA-2D) achieving a 6.5-fold increase in inter-group Euclidean distance compared to conventional one-dimensional PCA (PCA-1D), improving detection of adulterated samples. • ATR-FT-IR 2T2D-COS analysis identified diagnostic vibrational markers for CBD at 1624, 1579, 1050, 1028, and 883 cm⁻¹, with PCA-2D producing approximately 10.3-fold amplification of inter-group spatial separation compared to PCA-1D, enabling enhanced discrimination of high-CBD samples. **Dosage & Administration** Not reported. **Safety & Adverse Effects** Not reported. **Evidence Quality** This study is an analytical method validation paper rather than a clinical trial, limiting direct medical applicability. Key limitations include the small sample size (n=16 commercial oils), lack of external validation cohort, and reliance on spectroscopic pattern recognition without confirmatory biochemical mechanisms. While 2T2D-COS shows promise as an accessible quality control tool requiring only standard instrumentation, the authors note that dispersion-normalized multivariate metrics (Mahalanobis distance) and population-level statistical tests did not demonstrate equivalent analytical gains as Euclidean distance measures, suggesting results may not be robust across all statistical frameworks. The study provides moderate evidence for a novel analytical methodology but cannot directly inform clinical cannabis use or safety profiles.

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