Endogenous occurrence of some anabolic steroids in swine matrices

Abstract

Following findings of 17beta-19-nortestosterone (150-200 microg kg(-1)) in pigs of unspecified gender imported into the European Union, a study to determine steroid and hormone levels in swine from six age/gender categories (uncastrated 'old' boars, cryptorchids, one intersex, barrows, gilts and sows) was initiated. Indeed, for some hormones there has been a discussion about their being endo- or exogenous. Tissue and urine samples from swine from each of the six categories were obtained in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and the USA. Samples were analysed in three laboratories. Quantitation was obtained for norandrostenedione, 19-nortestosterone and boldenone. The results give a well-documented overview of the status of the presence of these hormones in swine. The data illustrate that uncastrated 'old' boars produce the highest percentage of 'positive' matrices, followed by the cryptorchids. Concentrations in the matrices of the barrows and the gilts are lower. Also, sow matrices contain low amounts of nor-steroids. Furthermore, urine samples from an intersex pig contains a higher concentration of nortestosterone than sows and can therefore be suspected for illegal use of these hormones. Veterinarians taking samples in pig farms for the analysis of hormones need to be aware of the presence and concentrations of these substances in the different categories.

Detection of the administration of 17β‐nortestosterone in boars by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

“…The analysis of urine samples collected from adult pigs in routine controls demonstrated the presence of endogenous 17bN in agreement with data described by other authors. 19,20,[35][36][37] The wide range of concentrations obtained for 17bN and its precursor, norandrostendione (Table 3), may be explained by the gender and the age of the animals providing the samples, in agreement with data recently published by other authors. 37 Information about the gender and the ages of the animals providing our samples was not available.…”

“…29,30 In non-treated calves, ABA and traces of NorE were detected. 15,21 17bN was also detected in non-castrated and cryptorchid male pigs, in testicular tissue and in urine from boars, [32][33][34] at very low concentrations in barrow and female pigs, 19,20,[35][36][37] and in the follicular fluid of sows. Detection of the consumption of anabolic agents is performed by the identification of specific metabolites using gas chromatography or liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC/MS, LC/MS) or to tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS).…”

Boldenone, testosterone and 1,4‐androstadiene‐3,17‐dione determination in faeces from horses, untreated and after administration of androsta‐1,4‐diene‐3,17‐dione (boldione)

“…Therefore, an official concentration threshold of free 17β-Bold at 15 ng/mL has been adopted, making mandatory the quantification of 17β-Bold in entire male urine (Ho et al, 2004). Bold is also considered to be endogenous in several other mammals, including man (Schänzer Female Gelding Thoroughbred other Unknown 0 1 0 6 0 2-5 8 1 0 6 3 6-10 2 5 3 3 6 11-16 3 5 2 0 6 17-33 0 1 3 0 4 Total 13 13 8 15 19 et al, 1994), cattle (Arts et al, 1996) and swine (Poelmans et al, 2005). Drug testing in horse faeces could be a good alternative to urine for testing anabolic steroids at breeding as faeces are much easier to collect from young animals.…”

Natural Hormones in Food-Producing Animals:Legal Measurements and Analytical Implications

“…As a matter of fact, meat is clearly one of the most naturally 'contaminated' foods (Maume et al, 2001;Maume et al, 2003;Poelmans et al, 2005a). Data published by Swan et al in 2007 already suggested that maternal beef consumption may alter males' testicular development in utero and adversely affect his adult reproductive capacity (Swan et al, 2007).…”

“…As regard to hormonal content, all foodstuff of animal origin contains steroid hormones and metabolites, but their concentrations vary with the kind of food, species, gender, age and physiological stage of the animal (Daxenberger et al, 2001;Poelmans et al, 2005aPoelmans et al, , 2005b. As a matter of fact, meat is clearly one of the most naturally 'contaminated' foods (Maume et al, 2001;Maume et al, 2003;Poelmans et al, 2005a).…”