Profiling of 19-norandrosterone sulfate and glucuronide in human urine: implications in athlete's drug testing.
19-Norandrosterone (19-NA) as its glucuronide derivative is the target metabolite in anti-doping testing to reveal an abuse of nandrolone or nandrolone prohormone. To provide further evidence of a doping with these steroids, the sulfoconjugate form of 19-norandrosterone in human urine might be monitored as well. In the present study, the profiling of sulfate and glucuronide derivatives of 19-norandrosterone together with 19-noretiocholanolone (19-NE) were assessed in the spot urines of 8 male subjects, collected after administration of 19-nor-4-androstenedione (100mg). An LC/MS/MS assay was employed for the direct quantification of sulfoconjugates, whereas a standard GC/MS method was applied for the assessment of glucuroconjugates in urine specimens. Although the 19-NA glucuronide derivative was always the most prominent at the excretion peak, inter-individual variability of the excretion patterns was observed for both conjugate forms of 19-NA and 19-NE. The ratio between the glucuro- and sulfoconjugate derivatives of 19-NA and 19-NE could not discriminate the endogenous versus the exogenous origin of the parent compound. However, after ingestion of 100mg 19-nor-4-androstenedione, it was observed in the urine specimens that the sulfate conjugates of 19-NA was detectable over a longer period of time with respect to the other metabolites. These findings indicate that more interest shall be given to this type of conjugation to deter a potential doping with norsteroids.
Strahm
Emmanuel
E
Swiss Laboratory for Doping Analyses, Centre Universitaire Romand de Médecine Légale, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois and University of Lausanne, Ch. des Croisettes 22, 1066 Epalinges, Switzerland.
Baume
Norbert
N
Mangin
Patrice
P
Saugy
Martial
M
Ayotte
Christiane
C
Saudan
Christophe
C
D000328:Adult; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D003345:Corticosterone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000652:urine; D004300:Doping in Sports; D004962:Estranes / Q000652:urine*; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection / Q000379:methods*; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry; D055815:Young Adult
C423402:19-norandrosterone glucuronide; D004962:Estranes; C027516:19-norcorticosterone; D003345:Corticosterone