Birth control pills reduce muscle training gains

Female athletes making use of oral contraception may pay a big price in the form of lowered strength gains from resistance exercise, according to a recent study.

Birth control pills were identified as a major suspect behind some women not able to garner the same benefits as others from exercises like working against tension bands or lifting weights, as per exercise physiologist Chang Woock Lee and his colleagues at Texas A&M University at the Experimental Biology meeting in New Orleans.

From Sciencenews.org:

In an earlier study, Lee’s group noted that many young female athletes reported using oral contraception. These pills have been specifically formulated to alter a woman’s steroid-hormone levels. Since certain steroids can affect how efficiently the body bulks up and gains muscle, Lee wondered whether these pills might also limit strength gains.

So, three times a week for 10 weeks, the researchers had 73 young women (18 to 34 years old) complete 13 different exercises. The regimen was intense, working muscles throughout the body. None of the recruits had been regularly working out beforehand. But they sure were now. Each had to complete her resistance training against weights that were individually tailored to work her muscles at 75 percent of their maximum strength.

Women administered with oral contraceptives including medium- or highly androgenic progestins were able to attain less than a 0.5 percent muscle mass gains over as period of ten weeks.

Cells mediating steroid-resistant asthma identified

Researchers at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC have been able to identify cells that can play a critical role in some forms of steroid-resistant asthma, which is a complication of the condition that makes treatment even more challenging.

The study was published in an issue of the Journal of Immunology.

From Sciencedaily.com:

More than 22 million Americans (including 9 million children) are diagnosed with asthma, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As many as 50 percent of them have asthma that can be resistant to steroids, which are intended to reduce lung inflammation during an asthma attack, Dr. Kolls said.

"Asthma is a challenging condition to treat. For many patients, if they take preventive medications regularly, the condition can be controlled and they can lead relatively normal lives," Dr. Kolls said. "Inhaled steroids are an important treatment for patients to prevent asthma attacks. Unfortunately, some patients have attacks despite the use of inhaled steroids, meaning they don't respond to steroids or they need such high doses that side effects are experienced."

It was remarked by study's senior author, Jay K. Kolls, MD, chief of the Division of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Allergy and Immunology at Children's Hospital that discovery of a lineage of cells known as T Helper Type 17 (Th17) can be useful in helping scientists to develop new treatments and exercise a better control on the disease.

COPD management is effectively managed with steroids

The use of inhaled steroids can be extremely useful for reducing the mortality rate associated with in COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), according to a study appearing in an issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP).

It was reported by the study that patients making use of steroids in pairing with beta-agonists tend to notice a reduction in cardiovascular-related death alone by 38 percent.

From Sciencedaily.com:

Dr. Macie and colleagues found that the mortality rates in patients 65+ who received inhaled corticosteroids were 11.7 percent, compared with 13.1 percent for those who did not. Patients in the younger group showed even greater results, with a mortality rate of 3.0 percent for patients receiving inhaled corticosteroids within 90 days, compared with 6.0 percent for those who did not, providing a mortality reduction rate of 53 percent. When patients who received steroids in the year prior were removed from the analysis, mortality was reduced by 34 percent. Researchers attribute this finding to multifactorial reasons, including reductions in exacerbations of the disease and suppression of inflammation.

Researchers also found a 23 percent reduced risk of death when comparing the effects of inhaled steroids with bronchodilators in patients in the 65+ group. In all cases, the most significant results were found when inhaled corticosteroids were administered within the first 30 days following hospital discharge.

W. Michael Alberts, MD, FCCP, President of the ACCP, remarked that findings of this study have implications for clinicians and suggest the requirement of further research in order to define the roles and mechanisms of the effects of inhaled steroids on both respiratory and cardiovascular mortality.

Injectable steroids demonstrate efficacy for treating diabetic complications

Triamcinolone (a corticosteroid), when injected directly into the eye, for treating progression of a complication of diabetes, diabetic retinopathy can be more than just useful, according to a study.

The finding was disclosed in the December issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

From Sciencedaily.com:

Corticosteroids have been shown to interfere with the creation of new blood vessels, possibly by reducing the production of compounds that spur their growth, the authors note. However, steroids are also associated with other eye diseases.

"Use of this intravitreal [injected into the eye] corticosteroid preparation to reduce the likelihood of progression of retinopathy is not warranted at this time because of the increased risk of glaucoma and cataract associated with intravitreal steroid use," the authors write. "Any treatment to be used routinely to prevent proliferative diabetic retinopathy likely needs to be relatively safe because the condition already can be treated successfully and safely with panretinal photocoagulation. Nevertheless, further investigation with regard to the role of pharmacotherapy for reduction of the incidence of progression of retinopathy appears to be warranted."

The finding was revealed after a study involving 840 eyes of 693 participants having macular edema was conducted by Neil M. Bressler, M.D., of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, and colleagues in the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network.

Diuretics to hide presence of anabolic steroids

Doping tests are not revealing the presence of anabolic steroids and sportsmen on steroids have endless reasons to smile - thanks to diuretics.

Compounds like epitestosterone, plasma expanders, and secretion inhibitors are in great demand today and have been "motivating" sportsmen on steroids to reap and optimize the associated benefits without coming in proximity to the suspicious eyes of anti-doping officials.

From Entertainment.howstuffworks.com:

Epitestosterone

Epitestosterone is a biological form of testosterone that does not enhance performance. Drug tests for testosterone typically measure the ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone (T/E ratio). An athlete can inject epitestosterone, lower the T/E ratio and hide the use of testosterone. By itself, epitestosterone has no real harmful side effects.

Plasma Expanders

Plasma expanders are substances that are used to increase the fluid component of blood. They are used to treat victims of shock, trauma and surgery. Athletes can use these substances to dilute the concentration of banned substances (EPO) in their blood. Most side effects include moderate to severe allergic reactions.

Secretion Inhibitors

Many drugs and foreign substances have structures that are shaped like organic acids. In the body, these organic acids are removed by a protein in the kidney that transports organic acids. If this protein can be blocked, then these drugs or foreign substances would not appear in the urine. Doctors use these inhibitors to treat gout. However, the drugs can be used to manipulate the results of urine drug tests. Possible side effects include nausea, vomiting, allergic reactions and kidney problems.

The fact that scientists and anti-doping officials have not yet find a way out for identifying diuretics is surely giving more than just a reason to professional sportsmen to have the last laugh.

Sport cheats need to be careful

Benzothiazepine test, which can be used to detect a specific range of untested but potentially performance enhancing compounds, is presently under the pipeline and is expected to make life difficult for sportsmen on steroids.

Tests for a specific class of drugs were formulated by a German research team; this event overrides the past wherein doping tests were developed only after a drug was identified.

From News-Medical.Net:

On the face of it, the Beijing Olympics were remarkably drug free with only six athletes being caught during the games and three further suspect cases identified after the games closed. Rumours suggest that many athletes were in fact using performance-enhancing drugs that could not be detected using standard tests. One possibility is that some athletes were using compounds that have not yet been tested in humans, but have shown performance enhancing properties in animal trials. Because these compounds are in the early stage of development no test has been developed, so their use will go undetected.

A new test, announced in the launch issue of the new journal, Drug Testing and Analysis, will help sports officials stay one step ahead of the game by allowing them to screen for some of these emerging drugs, as well as others in the same class that have not yet reached the market.

The test detects a core chemical structure belonging to a class of compounds called benzothiazepines. These compounds stabilise protein channels that would otherwise "leak" calcium from muscle cells during strenuous exercise. Calcium is needed for muscle contraction and this "leaking" effect weakens the contractions and is a causal factor in muscle fatigue.

JTV-519 and S-107, benzothiazepines currently in development for the treatment of heart abnormalities, are known to increase endurance in mice. Although they have not yet entered human clinical trials, both can be detected using the test.

Mario Thevis, Director of the Center for Preventive Doping Research at the German Sport University of Cologne, Germany said that the preventive research will be more than useful for curbing the relationship from steroids and sports from reaching new heights.