The Cross-Reactivity of the Cannabinoid Analogs (delta-8-THC, delta-10-THC and CBD) and their metabolites in Urine of Six Commercially Available Homogeneous Imm

• NCJ Number: 311646
• Date Published: March 2026
• Author(s): Carl E. Wolf; Ashley A. Pokhai; Justin L. Poklis; Grace R. Williams
• Length: 9 pages
• Grant Number(s): 15PNIJ-21-GG-04188-RESS
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)

Abstract

There has been an exponential surge in the presence and use of cannabinoids since the federal legalization of hemp (Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018). This growth is not only attributed to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), the most abundant phytocannabinoid components of cannabis and hemp, respectively, but with many other emerging THC analogs. Structurally, these analogs are similar to delta-9-THC, yet very little information is available about their potency and even less information is available regarding their detectability using commercially available cannabinoid screening kits. Due to their structural similarity, current cannabinoid homogeneous immunoassay screening methods may be able to detect these emerging cannabinoid analogs and their metabolites.

Six urine immunoassay kits (Abbott Cannabinoids – Abbott Diagnostics, LZI Cannabinoids (cTHC) Enzyme Immunoassay – Lin-Zhi International, DRI® Cannabinoid Assay and CEDIA™ THC – Thermo Fisher Scientific, ONLINE DAT Cannabinoid II – Roche Diagnostics, and Syva EMIT®II Plus – Siemens Healthineers) were evaluated at two different cutoff concentrations: 50 ng/mL and 20 or 25 ng/mL. The analysis was performed on an Abbott Architect Plus c4000 (Abbott Diagnostics). Delta-8-THC, CBD, olivetol, and their major metabolites, and delta-10-THC chiral analogs were evaluated. The limit of detection was evaluated by preparing each analog at 20, 50, 100, and 1000 ng/mL in urine. Analytes did not cross react at 1000 ng/mL for a cutoff were considered not detectable. If detected, the appropriate concentration was used as the decision point to determine the precision at the immunoassay’s cutoff and assess the linear range of the anaog.

The six commercially available urine cannabinoid homogeneous immunoassay screening kits cross reacted with the following analogs: delta-8-THC, 11-OH-delta-8-THC, 11-COOH-delta-8-THC, 6-OH-CBD, 7-OH-CBD, all delta-10-THC chiral analogs, and olivetol with varying selectivity depending on the screening kit and cutoff concentration. The kits did not cross react with the following analogs: CBD, 7-COOH-CBD, Abnormal CBD, CBDA-A, and olivetolic acid.