Poster Presentation 24th International Conference of Racing Analysts and Veterinarians 2026

‘Dogabolics II’ Project – An Update on Prostanozol, Mechabol, Turinabol and Finaflex 1-andro (130424)

Sean Yamada 1 , Paul W Zahra 2 , Andy Pranata 1 3 , Maryam Kazemi Zahrani 3 , Karen Caldwell 4 , Steven L Karamatic 5 , Malcolm D McLeod 3
  1. Racing Analytical Services Limited, Flemington, VICTORIA, Australia
  2. Shimadzu, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
  3. Research School of Chemistry, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
  4. Queensland Racing Integrity Commission, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
  5. Greyhound Racing Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

In competitive animal sports, the illicit use of performance affecting substances can impact on both sport integrity and animal welfare. In Australia, greyhound racing is a multibillion-dollar industry and contributes greatly to the national economy. Anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) are deemed permanently prohibited substances in the Greyhound Australasia Rules of Racing for their performance enhancement effects. Novel AAS (designer steroids) present additional challenges of being undetectable by targeted screening and lacking toxicological data, raising further concerns with safety. A number of these AAS were also identified locally, in seized materials by Queensland police. To aid anti-doping laboratories in challenging emerging drug threats, the ‘Dogabolics II’ project was conducted in 2016. This collaborative, nationwide project involved in vivo drug administrations of designer steroids in greyhounds and aimed to develop detection methods for these substances in the canine. From the joint work by the Australian National University (ANU) and Racing Analytical Services Ltd, the canine metabolism of the designer steroids furazadrol and Jungle Warfare (D6-methyltestosterone) had been published for the first time.1,2

Here we provide an update on the project, reporting on the metabolic fates of the designer steroids prostanozol, mechabol, turinabol and Finaflex (1-epiandrosterone) in the canine. The major urinary metabolites were detected and confirmed by comparison with reference materials, obtained either commercially or synthetically. The most commonly observed phase I biotransformations were mono-oxygenations, alcohol oxidations and reductions. Putative phase II glucuronides were detected however there was no evidence of steroid sulfate conjugation. A comparison of in vivo and in vitro metabolite detections will be discussed here.

The identified drug metabolites were added as targets to routine drug screens within the laboratory. Each identified metabolite was assessed on its lower limit of detection, extraction recovery and excretion profile. The project results were successfully translated into improvements for routine drug doping control.

  1. (1) Pranata, A.; Curtis, B.; Waller, C. C.; Caldwell, K.; Zahra, P. W.; Karamatic, S. L.; McLeod, M. D. The in Vivo Metabolism of Furazadrol in Greyhounds. Drug Testing and Analysis 2021, 13 (10), 1749–1757. https://doi.org/10.1002/dta.3128. (2) Pranata, A.; Yamada, S.; Weththasinghe, S.; Caldwell, K.; Zahra, P. W.; Karamatic, S. L.; Gardiner, M. G.; McLeod, M. D. The in Vivo Metabolism of Jungle Warfare in Greyhounds. Steroids 2023, 190, 109150. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.steroids.2022.109150.