At the May 19 Ohio State Racing Commission (OSRC) meeting, discussion continued regarding a new study concerning the effects of cobalt on Thoroughbred and Standardbred racehorses.
Dr. James Robertson, consulting veterinarian, updated the OSRC on the progress of the OSRC/The Ohio State University (OSU) and Ohio Department of Agriculture's Analytical Toxicology Laboratory (ATL)'s comprehensive cobalt research study, which focuses on what cobalt does to a horse's system and its potential effect on racehorses.
Dr. Robertson said the most recent meeting of the cobalt research committee was held May 12, 2015 at The Ohio State University to discuss the study parameters.
Dr. Beverly Byrum, Director of Laboratories for ATL, the Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (ADDL) and the Consumer Protection Lab, spoke in detail about the ATL, the official equine drug testing lab for the Ohio State Racing Commission.
Dr. Byrum said the ATL currently tests post-race samples of equine urine and blood from all seven of Ohio's pari-mutuel racetracks and the 65 county fairs that conduct pari-mutuel wagering on harness racing, and that the ATL's objective is to protect horses through the detection of prohibitive substances and report their findings in a timely manner to the OSRC.
"ATL is one of the premiere equine drug testing labs in the United States and is a Racing Medication Testing Consortium (RMTC) accredited lab," she declared. "ATL has one of the highest standards of technical competency in the US, and is one of only five labs in the United States to be approved by the RMTC."
In 2014, Dr. Byrum explained, ATL partnered with The Ohio State University and initiated a post-doctorate degree for students to gain experience in laboratory testing, and added that the ATL regularly does interval, double-blind studies that speak to the quality management of ATL.
"ATL is one of the few laboratories in the United States that has the equipment which is able to detect cobalt in both the blood and urine of equines," Dr. Byrum acknowledged. Of 15 equine testing laboratories nationwide, only five have the ability to test for cobalt.
Soobeng Tan, ATL Director, submitted the 2014 ATL annual report to the OSRC, discussing testing procedures and results from 2014. Last year, Tan said, 6,764 equine urine samples, 9,222 equine blood samples and 5,163 TCO2 tests were performed, for a total of 21,149 total tests. As a result of these tests, 112 positives, including those taken at Ohio's county fairs, resulted (52 Thoroughbreds & 60 Standardbreds). In addition, 62 human urine samples were submitted to the lab, of which ten (16.1%) were positive (the most common drug being marijuana).
In the equine sector, 71% of the 112 positives were either flunixin (Banamine) or phenylbutazone (Bute), a trend that had continued from 2013 of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) medications being the most dominant pharmacological group of drugs detected, with a total of 79 positives.
In 2014 TCO2 testing was re-initiated by the ATL, resulting in seven TCO2 positives from 5,163 blood samples drawn. From 2007 through December 2013, TCO2 testing had been performed at each of Ohio's seven tracks prior to each race.
The next OSRC monthly meeting will take place on June 23 at 10 am, 77 South High Street, 31st floor, Columbus, Ohio. The meeting is open to the public and horsemen are encouraged to attend.
Kimberly A. Rinker
The following is from http://www.horsemansnotebook.com/
Cobalt Use In Racehorses
In the horseracing world trainers are always looking for the magic bullet; something to give their horses an edge over competitors. Cobalt appears be an addition to a long list of pharmaceuticals and nutriceuticals being used on racehorses for the purpose of performance enhancement.
Cobalt occurs naturally in horses in very minute amounts. The dietary requirement for cobalt is less than 0.05 ppm. Cobalt is a component of Vitamin B-12. B-12 is produced in the horse’s cecum and colon by microorganisms. The amount of cobalt required by horses is easily reached through typical horse feeds.
There have been no known cases of a deficiency of cobalt in horses or a deficiency of vitamin B-12. There shouldn’t be any need to supplement a horse with cobalt for reasons of preventing a deficiency.
Horse trainers are supplementing their horses with cobalt thinking it will increase the production of red blood cells making it another form of blood doping. Whether it works or not is not known although veterinarians studying cobalt use don’t think it’s effective. One of the big concerns is the negative side effects of overdosing horses with the mineral. Heavy metals like cobalt can’t be broken down by the body and can accumulate to toxic amounts over time. In humans overdoses produced organ damage, impaired thyroid activity, goiter formation and death.
Another concern should be that trainers giving horses cobalt with the intent to enhance their performance are acting criminally. Even if it the cobalt doesn’t enhance performance, it tells me there are trainers who will put just about anything into their horse’s bodies if there’s a chance it will enhance performance even when they don’t know what negative effects there could be to the horse’s health.
Countries worldwide are testing for cobalt use in racehorse. It is said that supplementing racehorses with cobalt has been around for the past couple of years. Australia has reported cobalt showing up in horses above the 200 microgram threshold set by the Australian Racing Board. Some states in the United States have been testing for cobalt since last year but there has been a problem setting a threshold. The Emirates Racing Authority says it has been testing for cobalt since January 2014 and doesn’t feel there is a problem in the United Arab Emirates.
In the United States, the New York Gaming Commission recently passed an amendment to the Thoroughbred out-of-competition testing rules that adds cobalt to the list of blood doping agents they are testing for. Under its rules for harness racing the Gaming Commission already has a heavy penalty for testing above the current 25 ppb threshold. Indiana has a ruling that penalizes trainers with horses testing over 25 ppb with up to a one year suspension.
Some horsemen are worried that the 25 ppb threshold may cause them to be penalized for giving basic supplements that contain cobalt. Dr. Rick Arthur , Equine Medical Director for the California Racing Board, determined the 25 ppb threshold was reasonable after doing a study on California Thoroughbreds where the average cobalt level was 1.8 ppb and the highest was 8.2 ppb. Around the same time Dr. Arthur was studying horses to get a baseline for cobalt, the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC) collected samples, to retest for cobalt, from racing jurisdictions all over the country and in every jurisdiction there were horses that tested above 50 ppb. Dr. Arthur said you couldn’t get those results without giving horses high levels of cobalt.
Dr. Mary Scollay, the Equine Medical Director for Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, in her research on cobalt, said high doses caused profuse sweating, muscle trembling, aimless circling, horses dropping to their knees or collapsing. Also, she noted changes in the blood she collected from the horses. The blood in the samples didn’t clot like it should. Dr. Scollay said that the test she had done on Kentucky racehorses showed a normal range for cobalt to be between 1 and 7 ppb even when given supplements with trace levels of cobalt.
The Unites States Trotting Association disagrees with the 25 ppb threshold after doing its own study and says it should be 70 ppb. The RMTC’s Scientific Advisory Committee hasn’t been able come to a consensus on a threshold for cobalt as yet. It’s concerned about penalizing a training for giving routine supplements and vitamins that may contain cobalt. It’s hoped the committee will meet in March and by that time maybe it will be able to make a decision.
Dr. Scollay said Kentucky is waiting for the RMTC to come up with a threshold before the State announces penalties for horses testing beyond the threshold. California requires that Standardbreds testing above the 25 ppb be put on the vet’s list until cobalt is cleared from the horse’s system. This can take time because the half-life for cobalt is one week. Dr. Arthur plans to recommend the same rule apply to Thoroughbreds.
I certainly hope all racing jurisdictions will set a threshold for cobalt not to exceed 25 ppb. From what I have read even 25 ppb seems high. I don’t think anyone knows the effect, on a horse’s health, that long-term ingestion of large doses of cobalt would have.
Related Articles: Cobalt, the Latest in Performances Enhancers?; 10 Year Suspensions for Cobalt Violations; More on Cobalt Use in Racehorses
