Urinary excretion of dietary contaminants in horses.
BACKGROUND
Presence of drugs is completely prohibited in post racing urine samples by most of racing and competition authorities, even if environmental contamination might occur.


OBJECTIVE
To assess the daily dose of several contaminants absorbed through the diet that would result in detectable concentrations in urine.


METHODS
Caffeine, theobromine, theophylline, atropine, scopolamine, bufotenine, DMT or morphine were administered orally to 6 horses, in different dosages, for 3 days before their urine was sampled for regular anti-doping tests.


RESULTS
Theobromine, theophylline, bufotenine and morphine daily intake >10 mg, 2 mg, 10 mg and 200 microg, respectively, by a performance horse, were found to result in detectable urinary concentrations. At the 2 tested doses, atropine (5 and 15 mg) and dimethyltryptamine (3 and 10 mg) were not detected in urine. For caffeine and scopolamine, even the lowest dosage tested (5 mg/horse/day and 2 mg/horse/day respectively) induced detectable concentrations of the molecule in urine.


CONCLUSIONS
Horses fed dietary contaminants, even at level much below the effective dosage, may be positive to antidoping urine analysis. Further research is needed to gain more confident results on a daily safe intake for caffeine and scopolamine.


CONCLUSIONS
Selection of feed materials appears to be of great importance to prevent non voluntary positive result to anti-doping tests.
Respondek
F
F
ENESAD, Nutrition et Santé Digestive des Herbivores, 26 boulevard Petitjean, BP 87999, 21079 Dijon cedex; and LCH, 15 rue de Paradis, 91370 Verrieres le Buisson, France.
Lallemand
A
A
Julliand
V
V
Bonnaire
Y
Y
D000818:Animals; D001285:Atropine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine; D002027:Bufotenin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine; D002110:Caffeine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D004300:Doping in Sports; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D006736:Horses / Q000378:metabolism / Q000652:urine*; D009020:Morphine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine; D004130:N,N-Dimethyltryptamine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D012601:Scopolamine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine; D013805:Theobromine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine; D013806:Theophylline / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000652:urine
D002027:Bufotenin; D002110:Caffeine; D009020:Morphine; D001285:Atropine; D013806:Theophylline; D012601:Scopolamine; D013805:Theobromine; D004130:N,N-Dimethyltryptamine