Screening of protein biomarkers for sports doping and veterinary control

There are similarities between sports doping and veterinary control. Prohibited substances (e.g., anabolic agents and peptide hormones) are similar, and immunoassays and chromatography-mass spectrometry are applied as analytical methods in both worlds. In recent years, detection strategies based on protein biomarkers were successfully developed and adopted in sports control. When measuring biomarkers, the window of detection can be extended due to a prolonged biological response, so a whole range of substances may be tackled in an indirect manner. In view of the similarities in intended biological effects, such as increased muscle mass, we envisage that biomarker-based detection may be adopted veterinary control in future. In this review, we discuss detection strategies based on protein biomarkers for biomarker discovery and method development. With the lessons learnt from successfully implementing biomarker strategies in doping regulations, we advocate adoption in the veterinary world and revision of the current restrictive regulations concerning analytical methods.