• The Cycling News forum is looking to add some volunteer moderators with Red Rick's recent retirement. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to @SHaines here on the forum, or use the Contact Us form to message the Community Team.

    In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.

    Thanks!

New Wonder Drugs in Endurance Sports coming soon...

I came across Steve Magness's blog recently - it's not a cycling blog, he's a runner, but he's currently completing his Masters degree in Exercise Science, and he's written for New Studies in Athletics and Running Times.

In his blog, he posts the worrying proposition that HIF-PH inhibitors and Affymax's product 'Hematide' are most likely starting to be used by athletes now, a view that French Anti-doping Agency president Pierre Bodry voiced last summer when the Tour was finishing.

To quote Steve;

"HIF-PH inhibitors:
What is so special about this drug is that it isn't synthetic EPO. It is not injectable either. It's simply a pill that you swallow.

"HIF is the pathway that controls EPO gene transcription. In each cell, this pathway regulates a number of different responses related to hypoxia (lack of oxygen). Normally, the pathway is activated by hypoxia, or an increase in Reactive Oxygen Species (think of Free Radicals and antioxidants..). Under normal conditions, the main portein HIF-1a is basically destroyed. Under hypoxic conditions, it isn't destroyed.

"When HIF-1a isn't destroyed and is stabilized it leads to an increase in EPO gene transcription and ultimately translation. That basically means that more EPO is made. EPO then can go to its receptors on young RBC's and prevent them from being destroyed. This all leads to the increased RBC mass/hemoglobin that we all are familiar with.

"Hematide:
This is a new drug that is also not synthetic EPO. Instead, it is a peptide that has been found to mimic EPO. Basically, structurally it is nothing like EPO, but functionally it does the same thing. So, even though it's not EPO, it can come in and bind to the EPO receptors and create an increase in EPO/RBC.

Same game, just the goalposts have moved again.

Martin (Editor)
 

buckwheat

BANNED
Sep 24, 2009
1,852
0
0
Visit site
VeloResults.co.uk said:
I came across Steve Magness's blog recently - it's not a cycling blog, he's a runner, but he's currently completing his Masters degree in Exercise Science, and he's written for New Studies in Athletics and Running Times.

In his blog, he posts the worrying proposition that HIF-PH inhibitors and Affymax's product 'Hematide' are most likely starting to be used by athletes now, a view that French Anti-doping Agency president Pierre Bodry voiced last summer when the Tour was finishing.

To quote Steve;

"HIF-PH inhibitors:
What is so special about this drug is that it isn't synthetic EPO. It is not injectable either. It's simply a pill that you swallow.

"HIF is the pathway that controls EPO gene transcription. In each cell, this pathway regulates a number of different responses related to hypoxia (lack of oxygen). Normally, the pathway is activated by hypoxia, or an increase in Reactive Oxygen Species (think of Free Radicals and antioxidants..). Under normal conditions, the main portein HIF-1a is basically destroyed. Under hypoxic conditions, it isn't destroyed.

"When HIF-1a isn't destroyed and is stabilized it leads to an increase in EPO gene transcription and ultimately translation. That basically means that more EPO is made. EPO then can go to its receptors on young RBC's and prevent them from being destroyed. This all leads to the increased RBC mass/hemoglobin that we all are familiar with.

"Hematide:
This is a new drug that is also not synthetic EPO. Instead, it is a peptide that has been found to mimic EPO. Basically, structurally it is nothing like EPO, but functionally it does the same thing. So, even though it's not EPO, it can come in and bind to the EPO receptors and create an increase in EPO/RBC.

Same game, just the goalposts have moved again.

Martin (Editor)

Gimme a break! LeMond was part of the clinical trials back in '76.:D
 
Sep 5, 2009
25
0
0
Visit site
Well this is the whole point of the blood profile approach. No need to test for individual drugs, or artificial EPO, or any future wonder drugs. The trick is to recognize the unnatural changes in the blood profile, not what might have caused it.
 
Jan 19, 2010
214
0
0
Visit site
Tests are already perfected...

Sorry to break it to you, but blood tests for these drugs are already well developed and should be in use already.

Everytime a pharmaceutical company does a clinical trial for a drug, one of the first things they have to do is develop a test to measure it in the blood. All that is required is for some good lab to adapt the test to urine and drug companies have shown an interest in helping WADA develop these test.

The bottom line is that although the goal posts seem to move, if WADA/UCI/AFLD want to catch the cheats, they have the power to do so if they are interested.
 
Thanks for the post Martin. We've discussed Hematide and various peptides on here in the past, but this was a good article.

Ex-trackie said:
Well this is the whole point of the blood profile approach. No need to test for individual drugs, or artificial EPO, or any future wonder drugs. The trick is to recognize the unnatural changes in the blood profile, not what might have caused it.
You're joking right? Can you name someone that the so called "Biological Passport" has caught, and been sanctioned? If you're talking in general theories, then yes, that's how it's supposed to work, but it's so political it really isn't catching much anyone other than small fish, obscure riders. By far, the riders being caught are still being caught the old fashioned way, failing controls. The biological passport is mostly just a political tool, and one that probably keeps average riders from being heavily doped.

Squares said:
Sorry to break it to you, but blood tests for these drugs are already well developed and should be in use already... The bottom line is that although the goal posts seem to move, if WADA/UCI/AFLD want to catch the cheats, they have the power to do so if they are interested.

Possible? Yes. In use? That I'm not sure of. But you are correct, it's a political game, especially with the UCI. They are run almost like an American political party. If they really wanted to catch the cheats, they could catch many more of them than they are with available testing. But as you know, it's all a shell game with them and one about controlling perception first.
 
Sep 5, 2009
25
0
0
Visit site
Alpe d'Huez said:
You're joking right? Can you name someone that the so called "Biological Passport" has caught, and been sanctioned? If you're talking in general theories, then yes, that's how it's supposed to work, but it's so political it really isn't catching much anyone other than small fish, obscure riders. By far, the riders being caught are still being caught the old fashioned way, failing controls. The biological passport is mostly just a political tool, and one that probably keeps average riders from being heavily doped.


;)

You will notice that I pointedly did NOT say "Biological Passport" but "blood profile". The much touted Biological Passport is, as everyone is clear on, based on the concept of monitoring blood profiles. I still believe strongly that blood profiles are a sound way to go, precisely because it is immune to the progress in development of newer better, more invisible drugs. If the drugs become so invisible that they have no effect on the blood profile, well then the rider is welcome to waste his money on useless medication as far as I am concerned. :D
 
Ex-trackie said:
...If the drugs become so invisible that they have no effect on the blood profile, well then the rider is welcome to waste his money on useless medication as far as I am concerned...

That's a good point, if a substance doesn't affect the blood profile, does it actually do any good to an endurance athlete? I'm not qualified to have an answer to that, but there's lots of discussions about gene doping and other areas which may make an athlete perform better and may not affect the blood. (sorry for repeating any previous discussions - I'm only getting up to speed with all the good stuff that's in here).

Squares said:
The bottom line is that although the goal posts seem to move, if WADA/UCI/AFLD want to catch the cheats, they have the power to do so if they are interested.

That's a really interesting statement too - the implication is that the UCI may not be interested... I had heard rumours last year that certain (very big) riders could have been sanctioned but instead were advised to lay low / have an illness. Could all be rubbish of course!

Martin
 
Jan 19, 2010
214
0
0
Visit site
name one...

Thomas Dekker. His biological passport profile showed signs of manipulation so they went back and tested an out of competition control and found his sample positive.

There is one name, and while he is not on the level of Valverde valv.piti or AC from OP fame, he was once considered a future grand tour contender.
 
Mar 19, 2009
832
0
0
Visit site
Squares said:
Sorry to break it to you, but blood tests for these drugs are already well developed and should be in use already.

Everytime a pharmaceutical company does a clinical trial for a drug, one of the first things they have to do is develop a test to measure it in the blood. All that is required is for some good lab to adapt the test to urine and drug companies have shown an interest in helping WADA develop these test.

The bottom line is that although the goal posts seem to move, if WADA/UCI/AFLD want to catch the cheats, they have the power to do so if they are interested.

That's not correct.

Everest Base Camp, Nepal – May 26, 2008 – In the run-up to the Summer Olympics, scientists are taking an innovative approach to develop new molecular testing methods for performance manipulation on the genetic level. A team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania today is attempting to climb Mount Everest, taking with them for the first time live mice to the “roof of the world”. The effort is being supported by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the molecular diagnostics company QIAGEN. The purpose of the researcher’s historic climb is to investigate tissue and blood samples from the mice to create a molecular signature for altitude-induced hypoxia. The scientists’ ultimate goal is the development of novel testing methods for gene doping by comparing such natural molecular signatures with induced signatures that would be created by gene doping. Such practices have been listed on WADA’s index of banned substances since 2003, but the identification of athletes using gene doping is still not possible. Accordingly, experts consider gene doping to be one of the most urgent problems in sports today.

http://gmathletes.wordpress.com/2009/10/08/sports-doping-researchers-to-tackle-mount-everest-2008-may-26/
 
Jun 18, 2009
281
0
0
Visit site
Squares said:
What is not correct about what I said? I said nothing about gene doping and the hematide and HIF-1a inhibitors are actual compounds that can be tested for today.

You are correct. The pharmacokinetic studies for t-time, half-life, LD50, and dosing regimens requires that analytical methods be in place for blood and urine (sometimes). The real issue with these are that they represent intellectual property, as well as a competitive advantage, so they are not placed in the public domain.
 

TRENDING THREADS