Philly’s Street Fentanyl Contains BTMPS, According to Study
Source: Spencer Platt / Getty
Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood is home to the largest open-air drug market on the East Coast.
A study conducted by Columbia University concluded that Philly’s Street Fentanyl Contains BTMPS.
What is BTMPS?
BTMPS — a common abbreviation for bis(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidyl) sebacate — is a hindered amine light stabilizers, or molecule, that manufacturers frequently add to plastics and other polymers to protect against degradation from heat and sunlight.
Karli Hochstatter and Fernando Montero, an epidemiologist and anthropologist from Columbia University, published their research in the Journal of the American Medical Association in February 2025.
Studying Philly’s Street Fentanyl since March 2024, the couple has tested 228 fentanyl samples collected in Kensington. Out of the 228 samples tested, 39 – or 17% of them – contained BTMPS.
BTMPS was first detected in Philadelphia by Hochstatter and Montero in June 2024. BTMPS was found in two of the eight samples collected that month. By November 2024, 12 of 22 samples – or 55% – contained BTMPS.
Source: Spencer Platt / Getty
Why BTMPS is being added to Fentanyl?
Researchers believe that BTMPS may be added to stabilize a fentanyl precursor chemical (a compound that participates in a chemical reaction to create another compound) that is susceptible to degradation from heat and oxygen.
Another common theory amongst researchers suggests that BTMPS may also be added to dilute other psychoactive substances, given its low cost.
How toxic is BTMPS?
BTMPS has not been approved for human consumption or been studied in humans.
However, it has been shown in rat studies to reduce nicotine use and attenuate withdrawal symptoms associated with morphine and cocaine.
The rat studies revealed several adverse health effects from exposure to BTMPS, Including heart defects, serious eye damage and death.
READ MORE:
RELATED: Montgomery County Lab 1st in the World to Identify New Synthetic Opioid More Potent Than Fentanyl
RELATED: Opioid Deaths Down 25% in Pennsylvania, White House says
RELATED: Coolio Died From Exposure To Fentanyl, According To Manager
Information from this article was sourced directly from The Conversation, written by: Karli Hochstatter, Columbia University and Fernando Montero, Columbia University
Karli Hochstatter receives funding from the NIH.
Fernando Montero receives funding from the NIH, the Social Intervention Group at Columbia University, and the Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research (CDUHR) at New York University.
