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In the wake of controversies caused by synthetic supplements, such as sportswear and prosthetics, which are designed to boost the performance of Olympic athletes, yesterday’s National Geographic honed in on a more organic form of performance enhancement - genetic manipulation, or “gene doping.”

“Gene doping” is a kind of genetic manipulation that could potentially allow athletes to grow stronger, faster muscle tissue, as well as recover more quickly from muscle fatigue. The science of gene doping came about as a result of research into degenerative neuro-muscular disorders like muscular dystrophy. National Geographic’s recent article “How ‘Gene Doping’ Could Create Enhanced Olympians” explains:

Gene doping uses techniques similar to gene therapies developed to treat muscle-wasting diseases, such as muscular dystrophy. Gene-doping may also work by modifying genes that are already in an athlete’s cells but whose functioning he or she might want to control. Injected into an athlete, a harmless virus could carry a performance-enhancing gene and splice it into a muscle cell, said Theodore Friedmann, a gene therapy researcher at the University of California, San Diego… A synthetic virus called Repoxygen, for example, has been used this way in animal tests to insert a gene for erythropoietin (EPO), a hormone that tells the body to make more red blood cells, which carry oxygen to muscles. EPO is important in the treatment of anemia, and it’s also a favorite doping agent for cyclists, runners, and cross-country skiers… Athletes are well aware of Repoxygen’s potential: A German coach was accused of trying to obtain it before the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Although genetic manipulation has not been a major issue in the current Olympic forum, scientists and athletes alike consider the possibility of future misuse of gene-enhancing technology to be an issue if increasing concern, which may take center stage in future Olympic games.

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