When growth hormone (GH) is administered, it affects a number of hormones in the body, in particular insulin-like growth factor I (or IGF-I) produced mainly in the liver and amino-terminal propeptide of type III collagen (P-III-NP) produced during bone and soft tissue production and breakdown. Using IGF-I and P-III-NP measurements combined according to a mathematical formula, of these biomarkers, enables one to identify the administration of GH as distinct from natural production. Since both GH and the biomarkers decline with age, an age adjustment to the formula is used. A separate formula is required for males and females since sex also affects these biomarkers.

The World Anti-Doping Agency have approved the biomarker test based on blood serum samples (serum being the clear liquid obtained when blood is coagulated). There is a need also to be able to measure these biomarkers in whole blood, including dried blood samples, as well as blood plasma (cell free blood).

Sophisticated but very reliable methods (using liquid chromatography coupled mass spectrometry) have been validated and checked by two international collaborative studies for the measurement of IGF-I. A similar approach for P-III-NP is being developed by us.The administration of growth hormone (GH) is prohibited in sport as are some of the substances that affect natural GH release or effects. Growth hormone releasing factors (GHRF) is one such group of substances. They range in size from relatively small chemicals, which are quite simple to detect in doping control analysis, to a group of peptides (or small proteins) whose detection is far more complex. This research investigates whether the metabolites of the larger GHRFs might be better substances to prove GHRF administration.

The administration of insulin and the wide range of insulin analogues are prohibited in sport unless one has a therapeutic use exemption such as is granted to individuals with insulin-dependent diabetes. Their concentrations in blood and urine is small, which poses a particular challenge. Furthermore, they are readily “lost” from the sample. We have shown that at least some of this loss is because of degradation of the insulin and/or the insulin “sticking” to the test tubes used during sample handling. 

Investigators

Professor David Cowan	Principal Investigator
Christiaan Bartlett	Lead Analyst Blood Doping
Elizabeth Yepez Gavilanes	Senior Analyst-Blood Doping
Nick Wojek	Head of Science & Medicine, UK Anti-Doping (UKAD)
Professor Andrew Hoofnagle	University of Washington
Dr Larry Bowers	Chief Science Officer at US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA)
Dr Holly D Cox	Senior Research Scientist, SMRTL
Dr Daniel Eichner	President/Director SMRTL, Salt Lake City
Brian D Ahrens	Director UCLA Olympic Analytical Laboratory
Professor Mario Thevis	Director, German Sport University Cologne
Dr Andreas Thomas	German Sport University Cologne
Dr Michelle Emrick	University of Washington
Peter Byers	Emeritus Professor, University of Washington
Professor Richard Holt	University of Southampton
Dr Stephen Morley	Clinical Senior Lecturer, University Hospital Leicester
Professor Paul Dargan	Consultant Clinical Toxicologist
Dr Matt Fedoruk	Chief Science Officer, US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA)
Professor Peter Sonksen	University of Southampton
Ivana Gavrilovic
Adam Tilcock
Scarlett Devey
Maggie (Malgorzata) Puchnarewicz
Dean Nyarko-Mensah

PhD Students

Siham Memdouh

PhD Student