A semiautomated radioimmunoassay for mass screening of drugs of abuse.

A rapid, semiautomated radioimmunoassay system for detection of morphine, barbiturates, and amphetamines is described. The assays are applicable to large drug abuse screening programs. The heart of the system is the automatic pipetting station which can accomplish 600 pipetting operations per hour. The method uses 15 to 30 mul or urine for the morphine and barbiturate assay and 100 mul for the amphetamine and combined morphine/barbiturate assays. A number of other drugs were tested for interference with the assays and the results are discussed.