Application of micro X-ray diffraction mapping to the exposure of counterfeit drugs

Professor M. D. Ward (New York University, USA) and his colleagues have recently proposed an interesting and effective application of the micro X-ray diffraction technique to anticounterfeit protection of pharmaceutical products. Counterfeit drugs have been a global threat to public health, and they undermine the credibility and the financial success of the producers of genuine products. There have been great demands for some good methods for rapid and nondestructive screening of the products. The research team's idea is the use of barcodes and logos fabricated on drug tablets using soft-lithography stamping of compounds that can be read by X-ray diffraction mapping but are invisible to the naked eye or optical microscopy. The materials used were suspensions of rutile powder mixed with corn syrup in a 1:2.5 (w/w) ratio or zinc oxide powder mixed with corn syrup at a 1:10 (w/w) ratio. It was demonstrated that the technique is feasible for realistic screening, because of its nondestructive, automated, and user-friendly properties. For more information, see the paper, "Anticounterfeit Protection of Pharmaceutical Products with Spatial Mapping of X-ray-Detectable Barcodes and Logos", D. Musumeci et al., Anal. Chem., Articles ASAP (DOI: 10.1021/ac201570r Publication Date (Web): August 30, 2011).