Analytical procedure for steroid profiling valid for Athlete Biological Passport

Abstract

Although various attempts have been made to eliminate doping in sport, hitherto they all have proved futile. Moreover, the main class of substances that jeopardises the fair play rule remains the same -anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS). To date, longitudinal monitoring of the fluctuations of the endogenous steroids content for a given athlete is regardeded as the most effective approach to the detection of AAS abuse. This is based on the fact that the activity of the steroid biosynthesis pathway may undergo significant changes in response to the AAS administration. This paper presents the entire analytical procedure for quantification of steroids crucial for the Athlete Biological Passport (ABP): testosterone, epitestosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone, androsterone, etiocholanolone, 5-α-androstandiol and 5-β-androstandiol. The procedure consists of a four-step sample preparation process followed by analysis by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The limits of quantification for the substances listed above were; 0.44 ng mL −1 , 2.07 ng mL −1 , 1.24 ng mL −1 , 62.49 ng mL −1 , 36.20 ng mL −1 , 16.90 ng mL −1 and 14.92 ng mL −1 , respectively. Aqueous solutions containing deuterated and non-deuterated steroids were used for calibration purposes. Subsequently, the validation parameters, e.g., precision, accuracy and recovery were evaluated for each substance individually.

Multivariate interpretation of the urinary steroid profile and training‐induced modifications. The case study of a Marathon runner

“…8 This innovative anti-doping approach defines the normality limits of urinary EAAS for each individual by means of Bayesian inference after repeated controls on the same athlete (at least three), progressively excluding the influence of interindividual variability 5,9 and, consequently, providing higher sensitivity and specificity scores to the screening tests. A pattern of six urinary EAAS is built into the ABP − testosterone (T), epitestosterone (E), androsterone (A), etiocholanolone (Etio), 5α-androstandiol (5α-Adiol), and 5β-androstandiol (5β-Adiol) 10,11 − together with five of their concentration ratios: T/E, A/Etio, A/T, 5α-Adiol/5β-Adiol, and 5α-Adiol/ E. 12 Lastly, dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) are mentioned as additional constituents of the urinary steroidal panel. 12 The effectiveness of this longitudinal Bayesian approach has been verified by several studies.…”