A Talk By
Jon Sprague, R.Ph., Ph.D.

Director of the Center for the Future of Forensic Science at Bowling Green State University & Bureau of Criminal Investigation Eminent Scholar

In October 2014, Ohio's heroin epidemic was put in the national spotlight when newsmagazine "60 Minutes” aired “Heroin in the Heartland.”   Across Ohio, heroin is often adulterated with fentanyl and in many cases fentanyl is often sold as heroin. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin.  More recently, synthetic forms of fentanyl have resulted in deaths across the state.  Dr. Sprague will examine the State’s heroin and fentanyl abuse patterns and review the basic chemistry, and pharmacological and toxicological mechanisms by which these agents not only induce drug seeking behavior, but also can lead to overdose and death.