Ragnar Thomsen

Ragnar Thomsen is a Senior Researcher at the Section of Forensic Chemistry within the Department of Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. He specializes in developing analytical methods for forensic toxicology, particularly automation of sample preparation and LC-MS/MS analysis of drugs of abuse and therapeutics in biological matrices.

His educational background includes:

• PhD in Forensic Toxicology (awarded April 22, 2015) from the Department of Forensic Medicine, focusing on drug metabolism by carboxylesterase 1 (CES1)
• Master of Pharmaceutical Science (MSc.pharm, awarded August 28, 2010)

Thomsen's research spans:

• High-throughput drug screening in wastewater and biological samples
• Chiral chromatography and LC-MS/MS method validation
• Metabolism of drugs involving carboxylesterase enzymes
• Emerging semi-synthetic cannabinoids (e.g., HHC-C8) in cannabis products
• Endocannabinoid system analysis in neurological diseases

His work bridges forensic science with clinical toxicology, emphasizing robust analytical solutions for real-world casework.

Analysis of his 2023-2025 publications reveals dominant trends in novel cannabinoid detection, method standardization for forensic postmortem cases, and interdisciplinary studies linking endocannabinoids to inflammatory diseases. His research demonstrates consistent innovation in analytical techniques while addressing evolving challenges in drug abuse monitoring.

Thomsen maintains active international collaborations, evidenced by co-authorship across Nordic institutions and presentations at conferences like TIAFT and NAFT. His multilingual proficiency (Danish, English, Faroese, Swedish, Norwegian) facilitates global research partnerships in forensic toxicology.