Closing in on steroid users
In order to intensify detection efforts and protect sporting, the EU aimed to develop new methods with increased accuracy and sensitivity. Current state-of-the-art detection for anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) are indirect, complicated and prone to error. The EU-funded SGLC/MS project proposed a new method based on the development of innovative reference material as AAS conjugates and new chromatographic and spectroscopic methods to detect them. The development of suitable reference material formed a key first objective of the project. As with substances that are ingested, AAS are broken down and processed to specific metabolites. Essentially, new detection methods rely on accurate measurements of these metabolites and not the steroid in its original form. Project partner, University of Helsinki set out to devise a new method for timely and reliable production of AAS metabolites. The production method was based on the use of specific enzymes termed uridine diphosphoglucuronosyltransferases (UGTs), which are involved in the metabolism of AAS in mammals. The data showed that as an alternative to chemical synthesis methods, enzymatic synthesis proved to be a viable option, also providing a series of advantages. The speed and simplicity with which the new method can yield the end product is one of the most attractive aspects of the approach. Overall, the developed methods can be applied not only for the enzymatic production of AAS metabolites but also a variety of other molecules. Their wide applicability could render them commercially attractive to a number of potential partners.