Controlling the misuse of cobalt in horses.
Abstract: Cobalt is a well-established inducer of hypoxia-like responses, which can cause gene modulation at the hypoxia inducible factor pathway to induce erythropoietin transcription. Cobalt salts are orally active, inexpensive, and easily accessible. It is an attractive blood doping agent for enhancing aerobic performance. Indeed, recent intelligence and investigations have confirmed cobalt was being abused in equine sports. In this paper, population surveys of total cobalt in raceday samples were conducted using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Urinary threshold of 75 ng/mL and plasma threshold of 2 ng/mL could be proposed for the control of cobalt misuse in raceday or in-competition samples. Results from administration trials with cobalt-containing supplements showed that common supplements could elevate urinary and plasma cobalt levels above the proposed thresholds within 24 h of administration. It would therefore be necessary to ban the use of cobalt-containing supplements on raceday as well as on the day before racing in order to implement and enforce the proposed thresholds. Since the abuse with huge quantities of cobalt salts can be done during training while the use of legitimate cobalt-containing supplements are also allowed, different urinary and plasma cobalt thresholds would be required to control cobalt abuse in non-raceday or out-of-competition samples. This could be achieved by setting the thresholds above the maximum urinary and plasma cobalt concentrations observed or anticipated from the normal use of legitimate cobalt-containing supplements. Urinary threshold of 2000 ng/mL and plasma threshold of 10 ng/mL were thus proposed for the control of cobalt abuse in non-raceday or out-of-competition samples.
Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Publication Date: 2014-09-25 PubMed ID: 25256240DOI: 10.1002/dta.1719Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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This research article investigates the misuse of cobalt as a performance enhancing substance in equine sports. The study proposes certain thresholds for cobalt levels in a horse’s system in different contexts (race day versus non-race day), and recommends the banning of cobalt-containing supplements on race day and the day before.
Context and Methodology
- The research revolves around the misuse of cobalt in horses, particularly in equine sports. Cobalt is known to trigger hypoxia-like effects in organisms, modulating certain genes to induce erythropoietin transcription, leading to increased red blood cell production and thus, enhanced aerobic performance.
- The affordability and accessibility of cobalt salts, coupled with their oral activity, make them attractive for blood doping in sports, essentially enhancing an equine athlete’s stamina and performance.
- The authors conducted surveys of cobalt levels in race day samples, using a technique called Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS).
Findings
- From their research, the scientists proposed certain thresholds to control cobalt misuse on raceday or in competition samples. These thresholds are set at a urinary track of 75 ng/mL and a plasma threshold of 2 ng/mL.
- Investigations on the effects of cobalt-containing supplements revealed that the common supplements could increase urinary and plasma cobalt levels beyond the proposed thresholds within just 24 hours of administration. This is a significant finding as it shows how readily cobalt levels can be manipulated in the body, making doping easier.
Suggestions for Control
- In light of their findings, the authors suggest banning the use of cobalt-containing supplements on raceday and the day before racing. This move is proposed as a way to enforce the suggested thresholds successfully.
- Considering that misuse could occur during training periods as well as racedays, separate urinary and plasma cobalt thresholds are suggested in the context of non-racedays or out-of-competition samples.
- To implement this, the recommended thresholds to control cobalt misuse are observed to be 2000 ng/mL for urinary and 10 ng/mL for plasma.
- The thresholds were recommended based on normal use of legitimate cobalt-containing supplements, ensuring that proper use won’t be affected by these regulations.
Cite This Article
APA
Ho EN, Chan GH, Wan TS, Curl P, Riggs CM, Hurley MJ, Sykes D.
(2014).
Controlling the misuse of cobalt in horses.
Drug Test Anal, 7(1), 21-30.
https://doi.org/10.1002/dta.1719 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Racing Laboratory, The Hong Kong Jockey Club, Sha Tin Racecourse, Sha Tin, N.T., Hong Kong, China.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Chromatography, Liquid / methods
- Cobalt / blood
- Cobalt / urine
- Dietary Supplements / analysis
- Doping in Sports
- Horses / blood
- Horses / urine
- Limit of Detection
- Substance Abuse Detection / methods
- Tandem Mass Spectrometry / methods
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