Recent improvements in sports drug testing concerning the initial testing for peptidic drugs (< 2 kDa) - sample preparation, mass spectrometric detection, and data review.

In this work, a novel initial testing assay based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry is presented, enabling the detection of peptidic drugs and drug candidates (< 2 kDa) prohibited in sports. The assay covers representatives and metabolites of gonadotropin releasing hormone and its analogs (GnRHs), growth hormone secretagogues (GHS), growth hormone releasing peptides (GHRPs), and the Vasopressin-analog Desmopressin. The general objective of this work was to reduce sample preparation efforts to a minimum while preserving highest possible sensitivity and specificity of the assay, demonstrating limits of detection between 50 and 200 pg/mL. Here, a "dilute-and-inject" strategy provides the simplest conceivable sample preparation procedure. Furthermore, the combination of well-established strategies for the determination of peptides, such as two-dimensional liquid chromatography, dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)-assisted electrospray ionization, high resolution mass spectrometric detection and a tailored reporter template, which facilitates data review enormously, provides a high-throughput initial testing assay for lower molecular mass peptidic and peptide-related analytes.