Gene Doping

Gene doping is a form of drug abuse in sport in which genetic material is injected into the muscle to improve performance or make the muscles grow stronger. According to WADA, gene doping is the transfer of nucleic acids or nucleic-acid sequences and the use of normal or genetically modified cells. Advances in medical gene therapy raise the danger that cheats might undergo procedures to modify their genes and enhance their physical capabilities; gene doping could, in principle, be misused to increase muscle growth, blood production, endurance, oxygen dispersal and pain perception.

Why it is considered the hardest doping method to catch

Ordinary doping substances are foreign chemicals that a test can look for directly. Gene doping is different: if it works as intended, it makes the athlete's own cells produce more of substances — such as extra growth factors or extra EPO — that are molecularly identical to what the body already makes naturally, which means a standard blood or urine test cannot easily tell a legitimately high natural value apart from an artificially boosted one. This is exactly why anti-doping scientists consider gene doping one of the most serious long-term threats to fair competition, even though confirmed real-world cases remain rare.

Detection and WADA status

Gene and cell doping falls under WADA's M3 category and is a prohibited method at all times. Detection research focuses on identifying the delivery vectors used to carry the genetic material into the body — for example, using PCR-based techniques to look for viral-vector DNA fragments that would not normally be present in a human cell — rather than looking for the resulting protein itself. This detection science is still developing, which is part of why gene doping is treated as a standing area of concern for the anti-doping community even though it is not yet a widespread practice.

Side effects

• cancer;
• autoimmunisation;
• heart attack;
• increased blood viscosity;
• difficult laminar blood flow through the vessels; …