Katherine Smart is a PhD candidate at UNT working with Dr. Teresa Golden in the forensic science program. She previously received her undergraduate degree at UNT in Biochemistry with a minor in Biology, and also earned her forensic science undergraduate academic certificate here. Katherine is currently working on developing new chromatographic methods for separating fentanyl analogs, which are illicit drugs. Her co-advisors are Dr. Guido Verbeck IV and Dr. William Acree Jr.

"The methods use new stationary phases-ionic liquids-for gas chromatographic instruments," she said. "I'm also predicting the partitioning of fentanyl analogs in various organs, such as heart, lung, muscle, fat, etc. This identifies sites of concentration of these compounds in the body."

Katherine did her Ph.D. qualifying exam on being able to predict drug separations using ionic liquid phases, which are considered specialty phases, for gas chromatography. This research proposal relied on understanding how these phases interact with drug compounds so predictions could be made on which specialty ionic liquid phase could separate the desired drug compounds.

"This proposal as a project would need multiple graduate and undergraduate students working on it, not only myself," said Katherine. "Since these phases have high thermal stability, Dr. Verbeck had suggested using these ionic liquids as phases for separating fentanyl analogs. This simplified my proposal into something I could manage."

Katherine was initially interested in the field of forensic science because she was fascinated by how much we are able to learn from so little evidence. "As an undergraduate student, I completed an internship in Dr. Golden's lab doing document analysis on indented pen impressions," she said. "When I was close to graduating, Dr. Golden offered me the opportunity to work as a graduate student in her chromatography lab. I was interested in learning more about using the chromatography instruments so I accepted."

Through research, Katherine has enjoyed meeting new people and learning about their work. She says that the most rewarding aspect of her work so far has been increasing her knowledge and expertise while being able to prove and validate the research.

"These specialty phases are not commonly used, but to me they are so cool since they can separate complex mixtures not easily done on traditional phases. I enjoy getting results that highlight the benefits of using these phases hoping to encourage more people to use these types of phases," she said.

Katherine's mentors at UNT are her three advisors, Dr. Golden, Dr. Acree and Dr. Verbeck. The chromatographic analysis of new methods for fentanyl analysis is done in Dr. Golden's lab. Dr. Verbeck's group synthesizes some of the compounds for analysis. Dr. Golden and Dr. Acree look at all of Katherine's results and edits her papers for publication.

"They share their knowledge, experience and wisdom with me. They help me to expand my horizons and consider things I have not before," she said. "I receive positive feedback and encouragement from them that boosts my morale and sense of accomplishment. They also provide me with space and supplies for me to do my work."

Ionic liquids as chromatographic phases are a relatively new application; these have not been yet applied to drug separations yet. Ionic liquid properties are still being explored. "As a result, you really don't know if these phases are successful towards separating fentanyl analogs until you try it," said Katherine.

This research could highlight a new way to identify fentanyl analogs and may be also useful for other illicit or designer drugs. "Many labs do not focus on identifying the fentanyl analog in a sample since all of these compounds are considered illegal," said Katherine. "By identifying these analogs specifically, this helps law enforcement in their fight to decrease the availability of these compounds in society."

While at UNT, Katherine says she's learned not to be afraid to ask questions and reach out to others. "UNT is a great community. Faculty and fellow students are supportive of one another. You will learn something new every day," she said.