Monday, May 23, 2011

EPO

I would imagine this search is about Lance Armstrong scandal.

Learn more about EPO, aka. Erythropoietin in Wikipedia


Erythropoietin, or its alternatives erythropoetin or erithropoyetin or EPO, is a glycoprotein hormone that controls erythropoiesis, or red blood cell production. It is a cytokine for erythrocyte (red blood cell) precursors in the bone marrow.
Also called hematopoietin or hemopoietin, it is produced by the peritubular capillary endothelial cells in the kidney and liver, it is the hormone that regulates red blood cell production. It also has other known biological functions. For example, erythropoietin plays an important role in the brain's response to neuronal injury. EPO is also involved in the wound healing process.
When exogenous EPO is used as a performance-enhancing drug, it is classified as an erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA). Exogenous EPO can often be detected in blood, due to slight difference from the endogenous protein, for example in features of posttranslational modification. On May 22nd 2011, an episode of 60 Minutes showed professional cyclist Tyler Hamilton confessing under oath about his, as well as Lance Armstrong and many others' use of the drug prior to the Tour de France in 1999, 2000 and 2001.

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