Research could revolutionise equine dope testing

A €1.6 million project centred inwards Northern Republic of Ireland is said to accept the potential to revolutionise the battle against doping inwards equine sport.

Researchers intend to prepare a novel fashion to examination for illegal drugs used inwards horses in addition to cattle.

It volition endure the showtime animate beingness doping examination to operate past times detecting in addition to monitoring the known biological effects of a banned substance, rather than the presence of the total itself.

It besides has the potential to revolutionise animate beingness drug testing past times enabling the screening of large numbers of animals to a greater extent than speedily in addition to efficiently than is currently possible.

The operate volition endure carried out past times scientists at Queen’s University’s Institute for Global Food Security in addition to the Irish Gaelic Equine Centre, equally good equally partners across Europe.

The Irish Gaelic Equine Centre, based at Johnstown inwards County Kildare, volition Pb the overall administration of the project, which it says has the potential to revolutionise the battle against doping inwards equine sport.

Project co-ordinator Mark Sherry said: “Greater testing efficiency volition Pb to higher in addition to faster detection in addition to give the upper-hand inwards the battle betwixt testers in addition to dopers dorsum to those upholding the law.

“The novel examination volition let testers to position the presence of functioning or presentation enhancing drugs equally shortly equally their desired upshot becomes apparent.”

The tests volition target, amidst other things, banned increment promoters, hormones in addition to antibiotics used on animals destined for the nutrient chain in addition to those involved inwards sport.

Dr Mark Mooney, from the Institute for Global Food Security, is leading Queen’s University’s interest inwards the European-Union funded DeTECH21 project.

“Current testing methods focus on detecting the presence of illegal substances inwards animals,” he said.

“These tests are expensive, time-consuming in addition to accept failed to larn out on measuring amongst black-market developments inwards producing, distributing in addition to administering banned substances.

“The novel examination volition assist mitigate that risk.

“We are developing an exclusively novel approach based on monitoring the physiological effects of banned drugs, rather than direct detecting the presence of those drugs.

“By identifying the unique biochemical fingerprints that banned substances leave of absence behind inwards an illicitly treated animal’s blood or urine, nosotros volition endure able to speedily position horses or cattle that accept been treated amongst an illegal drug.

“This has the potential to enable to a greater extent than efficient screening of larger numbers of animals than is currently possible.

“Any animate beingness inwards which the biological answer of a banned total is detected would thus endure singled out for farther tests to position just which illicit substances are present.”

The £33 ane yard 1000 Institute for Global Food Security is a cardinal exercise musician inwards improving global nutrient safety, in addition to inwards national in addition to global efforts to provide the world’s population amongst a sustainable, prophylactic in addition to secure render of high lineament food.

The institute’s director, Professor Chris Elliott, is currently conducting the official independent review of Britain’s nutrient render network, commissioned past times the Department for Environment, Food in addition to Rural Affairs (Defra) in addition to the Department of Health next the horse-meat scandal that swept Europe early on inwards 2013.

Elliott said: “Despite beingness banned for over xx years, the exercise of illegal increment promoters, hormones in addition to antibiotics is believed to nonetheless come about across parts of Europe in addition to farther afield.

“The criminal gangs that operate the global merchandise inwards illegal animate beingness drugs accept developed the way of avoiding detection past times conventional testing methods in addition to novel ways to notice this illicit merchandise are urgently required.”

Progress inwards developing the novel examination volition endure discussed at a major international conference to endure hosted past times the works life inwards April. The Food Integrity in addition to Traceability Conference volition attract leading scientists, nutrient standards regulators in addition to agri-food producers from closed to the world.

The two-year DeTECH21 projection is funded past times the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research, managed past times the Research Executive Agency.

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