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Detection of erythropoiesis stimulating agents in urine samples using a capillary Western system
Author(s) -
Desharnais Philippe,
Naud JeanFrançois,
Ayotte Christiane
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
drug testing and analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.065
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1942-7611
pISSN - 1942-7603
DOI - 10.1002/dta.2528
Subject(s) - urine , erythropoiesis , standardization , chromatography , capillary electrophoresis , carbohydrate deficient transferrin , medicine , computer science , chemistry , biochemistry , alcohol , alcohol consumption , anemia , operating system
The presence of erythropoiesis stimulating agents (ESAs) in the urine samples collected from athletes is detected using traditional Western blotting following either size‐based separation (SDS/SAR‐PAGE) or isoelectric focusing (IEF). Although there is an important testing effort, there is little doubt that ESAs are still abused in sports and that reducing the costs of the tests might increase the number of tests and improve deterrence. The capillary electrophoresis system developed by Protein Simple may be useful to this end. This platform is fully automated and could be easily implemented in anti‐doping laboratories, which would contribute to the improvement of the overall assay performance and standardization of the method. Such an automated system could be of interest during major sports events, such as the Olympic Games, where a high number of samples needs to be analyzed in a short period of time. From the experiments conducted so far, we conclude that the technique is promising, with the sensitivity and reproducibility needed to screen ESAs in human urine samples.