The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Detecting growth hormone abuse in athletes

Detecting growth hormone abuse in athletes
Detecting growth hormone abuse in athletes
There is widespread anecdotal evidence that growth hormone (GH) is used by athletes for its anabolic and lipolytic properties. Although GH is on the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) list of banned substances, the detection of abuse with GH is challenging. Two approaches have been developed to detect GH abuse. The first is based on the measurement of pituitary GH isoforms and the second is based on the measurement of markers of GH action.Pituitary GH contains multiple isoforms whereas recombinant human GH comprises solely the 22-kDa isoform. Immunoassays that recognize the different isoforms have been developed and form the basis of the test introduced by WADA at the Athens Olympic Games. To date, no athlete has tested positive.The GH-2000 project proposed a test based on the measurement of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and type III pro-collagen (P-III-P) as these markers increase in a dose-dependent manner in response to GH and their basal concentration varies much less than GH. When combined with discriminant function analysis, these markers were able to differentiate between those taking GH and placebo in double-blind placebo controlled trials. Subsequent studies have shown that the test is applicable across different ethnicities and is unaffected by injury.

abuse, biomarker, GH, IGF-I, isoforms, P-III-P, sport
1942-7603
426-433
Holt, Richard I.G.
d54202e1-fcf6-4a17-a320-9f32d7024393
Holt, Richard I.G.
d54202e1-fcf6-4a17-a320-9f32d7024393

Holt, Richard I.G. (2009) Detecting growth hormone abuse in athletes. [in special issue: Growth Hormone: Barriers to the Implementation of Human Growth Hormone Testing in Sport] Drug Testing and Analysis, 1 (9-10), 426-433. (doi:10.1002/dta.59).

Record type: Article

Abstract

There is widespread anecdotal evidence that growth hormone (GH) is used by athletes for its anabolic and lipolytic properties. Although GH is on the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) list of banned substances, the detection of abuse with GH is challenging. Two approaches have been developed to detect GH abuse. The first is based on the measurement of pituitary GH isoforms and the second is based on the measurement of markers of GH action.Pituitary GH contains multiple isoforms whereas recombinant human GH comprises solely the 22-kDa isoform. Immunoassays that recognize the different isoforms have been developed and form the basis of the test introduced by WADA at the Athens Olympic Games. To date, no athlete has tested positive.The GH-2000 project proposed a test based on the measurement of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and type III pro-collagen (P-III-P) as these markers increase in a dose-dependent manner in response to GH and their basal concentration varies much less than GH. When combined with discriminant function analysis, these markers were able to differentiate between those taking GH and placebo in double-blind placebo controlled trials. Subsequent studies have shown that the test is applicable across different ethnicities and is unaffected by injury.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: September 2009
Keywords: abuse, biomarker, GH, IGF-I, isoforms, P-III-P, sport

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 157591
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/157591
ISSN: 1942-7603
PURE UUID: 6639776f-26b4-49e4-b5f5-2a363f7b1913
ORCID for Richard I.G. Holt: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-8911-6744

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 08 Jun 2010 15:15
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 02:45

Export record

Altmetrics

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×