Detectability of micro-dosing?

[Tyler'sTwin]

From an interview with norwegian anti-doping researcher Yvette Dehnes:

Through her research, Dehnes has shown that micro doses can be detected up to a day later.

- I felt it was pretty encouraging, and partly due to the improvement of the analytical methods we have for EPO. If we tested subjects within 18-24 hours, we could actually see that they had doped.
- It is no longer the case that they can inject in the evening and be safe in the morning.

I assume she is referring to this study.

Detection of recombinant EPO in blood and urine samples with EPO WGA MAIIA, IEF and SAR-PAGE after microdose injections
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/dta.1579/abstract

The misuse of microdoses of performance enhancing drugs like erythropoietin (EPO) constitutes a major challenge in doping analysis. When injected intravenously, the half-life of recombinant human EPO (rhEPO) like epoetin alfa, beta, and zeta is only a few hours and hence, the window for direct detection of rhEPO in urine is small. In order to investigate the detection window for rhEPO directly in blood and urine with a combined affinity chromatography and lateral flow immunoassay (EPO WGA MAIIA), we recruited nine healthy people who each received six intravenously injected microdoses (7.5 IU/kg) of NeoRecormon (epoetin beta) over a period of three weeks. Blood and urine samples were collected in the days following the injections and analyzed with EPO WGA MAIIA as well as the current validated methods for rhEPO; isoelectric focusing (IEF) and sarcosyl polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SAR-PAGE). For samples collected 18 h after a microdose, the sensitivity of the EPO WGA MAIIA assay was 100% in plasma and 87.5% in urine samples at the respective 98% specificity threshold levels. In comparison, the sensitivity in plasma and urine was 75% and 100%, respectively, with IEF, and 87.5% in plasma and 100% in urine when analyzed with SAR-PAGE. We conclude that EPO WGA MAIIA is a sensitive assay for the detection of rhEPO, with the potential of being a fast, supplemental screening assay for use in doping analysis.

7.5 IU/kg would be about 500 IU for a GC-rider. That is the smallest micro-dose I've seen mentioned by various whistleblowers. Since the idea behind micro-dosing is to take your EPO in the evening and not glow in the morning, an 18-24 hour window of detection is unacceptable.

 

[skippythepinhead]

I'm not sure if that library is on my list of medlit subscriptions, but I will check when I get to work; $38 for an article from 2013 is pretty steep. I have to assume that the research was sponsored/paid for by the company that developed the test and that the test itself would only raise the possibility of doping rather than be a definitive CAS-proof test. Have to check the article or subsequent research to see which EPO varieties may still be undetectable by such test(s). Can't get information about the cost of test kits online (?)...

 

[sniper]

A dossier from 2010 on Pechstein with Ashenden cited as expert on "EPO Mikrodosierung"
https://www.marienkrankenhaus.com/fileadmin/pechstein/Pechstein-5-Doping-Aspekte-25-10-2010.pdf
says 24 hours max detectibility, in some cases 18 or even 12 hours max.

 

[Master50]

From an interview with norwegian anti-doping researcher Yvette Dehnes:



I assume she is referring to this study.

Detection of recombinant EPO in blood and urine samples with EPO WGA MAIIA, IEF and SAR-PAGE after microdose injections
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/dta.1579/abstract



7.5 IU/kg would be about 500 IU for a GC-rider. That is the smallest micro-dose I've seen mentioned by various whistleblowers. Since the idea behind micro-dosing is to take your EPO in the evening and not glow in the morning, an 18-24 hour window of detection is unacceptable.

the window is shortened by veinous injections instead of muscular.

 

[DirtyWorks]

This is a two-part question.

One part is the technical aspects of detection.

The other part, will the anti-doping authority process a detected positive? CIRC confirms the UCI hasn't in the past.

 

[Benotti69]

One way to detect it is being in form from March to October.

 

[TourOfSardinia]

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/are ... l-passport

Robin Parisotto:

Parisotto admits that while the perfect window may exist for potential dopers, in his view the benefits do not outweigh the risks, and that with each athlete, the doses of EPO will vary when in conjunction with the resulting benefit.

“That perfect window may exist but you can’t really generalize because each athlete is different.”

“I don’t know at what point a rider would get a benefit and remain under the radar.

“These days it’s more sophisticated and we are now seeing the small incremental changes. In the past there were these huge quantum leaps in haemoglobin from 14 to 16 and then back again to 14. Now it’s 15, 15.5, 16. That’s evidence that micro-dosing is taking place. I can’t put a number on that but there are many [profiles] that are still suspicious. There are still many out there that are still under observation and that need further expert review.”

 

[Master50]

In that report Parisotto says it is possible to win a grand tour clean. just for the clinicians that think of all races the GTs can only be won by dopers. well I guess that throws his expert opinion out the window because everyone knows better?

 

[Dear Wiggo]

Anti-doping expert Robin Parisotto has stated that although clean athletes can now win Grand Tours, the net needs to tighten around the more sophisticated cheats.

If you can win GTs clean, I would have to say : Job done. You can all go home now.

dckhead.

 

[Archibald]

Re:

Anti-doping expert Robin Parisotto has stated that although clean athletes can now win Grand Tours, the net needs to tighten around the more sophisticated cheats.

If you can win GTs clean, I would have to say : Job done. You can all go home now.

dckhead.

and then came this little faux pa...

...and added that Cookson can establish a more credible future in the fight against anti-doping

so we're fighting "anti-doping" and not doping... cool. Glad we got that straight

 

[Irondan]

Re:

One way to detect it is being in form from March to October.

Yes, you would think that would raise a red flag..

 

[King Boonen]

I can get the paper, will try find time to read it tonight.

 

[luckyboy]

Stumbled upon this study when searching about EPO testing. Figured there'd already be a clinic reference.

Here's the full thing. Seems like the microdoses riders take are tiny if this is the detection window is this long for such an amount

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258281938_Detection_of_recombinant_EPO_in_blood_and_urine_samples_with_EPO_WGA_MAIIA_IEF_and_SAR-PAGE_after_microdose_injections