“Oxygen Transport and Energy Production” is the topic for the 6th Annual USADA Symposium on Anti-Doping Science, which will be hosted by the United States Anti-Doping Agency October 26-28 in Dallas, Texas. Approximately 75 scientists, laboratory directors and sports administrators from nearly 30 countries are expected to participate in the event.
“Since our initial meeting on increasing oxygen transport in 2002, significant progress has been made by the community with regard to testing,” said Larry D. Bowers, Ph.D., USADA Senior Managing Director, Technical and Information Resources. “This year’s gathering will allow us to refine testing and make it more efficient, and thereby to be more effective in deterring doping and in supporting clean athletes.”
“Detection of Blood Doping” will be the subject for presenters Dr. Bruce Davis, Trillium Diagnostics LLC; Jakob Morkeberg, Bispebjerg Hospital, Denmark; and Dr. Lawrence Rice, the Methodist Hospital, Houston, during the Friday morning session. On Friday afternoon the focus will be on “Intra-Individual Reference Ranges and Longitudinal Approaches to Hematological Parameters” with presentations by Dr. Pierre-Edouard Sottas, Swiss Laboratory for Doping Analyses, and Dr. Davis.
Dr. Randy Eichner, University of Oklahoma; Dr. Mats Garle, Karolinska University Hospital Laboratory, Sweden; and Richard Hilderbrand, Ph.D., USADA Director of Science, will discuss “Detection of Recombinant EPO” Saturday morning before the focus turns to “Mitochondrial Manipulation” during the afternoon session. “Intra-Individual Reference Ranges and Longitudinal Approaches to Steroid Parameters” will be the topic for presentations by Dr. James Boyd, University of Virginia, and Dr. Olivier Rabin, World Anti-Doping Agency, during the final session Sunday morning.
Held annually, the USADA Symposium on Anti-Doping Science is designed to enable the medical and science communities to gather and discuss the science behind doping with the potential for developing a uniform testing scheme, as well as a research agenda and timeline, to make the science or legal aspects of testing more efficient. Previous USADA symposia focused on “Intra-Individual Reference Ranges” (2006); “Muscle Development & Recovery: Implications for Doping Control” (2005); “Detection of Human Growth Hormone Abuse” (2004); “Application of Gas Chromatography – Combustion – Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry to Doping Control” (2003); and “Oxygen Transport Enhancing Agents and Methods” (2002).
USADA is a non-profit, non-governmental independent agency dedicated to preserving the integrity of sport through research initiatives and educational programs. USADA is also responsible for the testing and results management process for athletes in the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movement.
USADA allocates $2 million annually toward the study of prohibited substances, the development of tests and other research that impacts anti-doping science. For a copy of the research grant guidelines and application, click here.