UCSB researchers have developed a test that may help law enforcement and medical officials combat date rape.

The test, developed by chemistry Professor Stanley Parsons and Ph.D. student Dawn Bravo, allows for the detection of gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB), a commonly used date-rape drug. UCSB received a patent for the drug test in March 2004 and is currently looking to market the test to a company interested in developing it into a commercial product. Current testing mechanisms on the market can only detect the presence of GHB when the dosage is dangerously high.

“There are tests out there already but they’re not as sensitive and are prone to false positives,” Bravo said. “This is the only one that’s this sensitive and accurate.”

Bravo said usage of the test extends beyond checking for GHB in drinks. Urine, blood and saliva can also now be tested for the drug because of the method’s sensitivity.

“Our test is sensitive to 0.03 mg/mL – that’s a really small amount necessary for a positive test,” Bravo said. “It will be really important in treating comatose patients who have been potentially drugged, as well as for testing bar drinks.”

Authorities have also complained that previous methods of testing are too complicated and expensive, Parsons said, often taking up to two days for test results. The newly developed test takes no more than two minutes to produce results, Bravo said.

Parsons said he originally developed the test because he had heard of problems with GHB in local bars. Santa Barbara business entrepreneur Harold Penn approached UCSB chemistry and biochemistry Professor David Harris and asked if a better test could be developed to detect GHB. Harris referred Penn to Parsons, who began the research. Penn subsequently wrote the first of two checks for an undisclosed amount of money to fund the research. At the time, Parsons was the chair of the Dept. of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and he asked Bravo to aid him in the research.

“She knows a lot about cloning and I knew we needed to clone the enzyme in the bacterium,” Parsons said.

Bravo, a chemistry and biochemistry specialist, cloned the GHB dehydrogenase enzyme, naturally found in the Ralstonia eutropha bacterium. That enzyme was then combined with an already commercially available enzyme and a protein dye. The mixture reacts when GHB is added, creating a bright purple color.

“I did extensive research before I even started in the lab, and that’s how I found that bacteria,” Bravo said. “Another research group was studying bacteria and found it reacted with GHB to form polymers … I knew it would react. We just had to figure out how to harness it.”

Since the development of the test, Parsons said corporations have also expressed interest in marketing the method for professional use. In addition to over-the-counter sales to the general public, the new test can be used by law enforcement officers to test for GHB in the bloodstream of suspects in custody or possible rape victims.

“Commercially we want it to be available to ER physicians, doctoral forensic labs and hopefully on a test strip for women,” Bravo said.

Although the test is more sensitive and can give more accurate results than previous methods, it is still susceptible to error when large quantities of alcohol are present. Parsons said a beverage with as little alcohol content as wine would be enough to throw off the test.

“The problem we’re stuck at is to devise a test kit that might include a battery to heat and evaporate the alcohol,” he said.

Even with the test’s vulnerability to alcohol, Bravo said the potential benefits of the method are far-reaching.

“It was rewarding to work on something like this because I was always very motivated. Something like this can have instant benefits to humanity.”