Summary
Dr. Andy Galpin discusses genetic testing for sports performance. Covers what genetic tests can and cannot tell you about athletic potential and training optimization.
Key Points
- What genetic testing reveals about performance
- Limitations of genetic testing for athletes
- Genes vs training and environment
- Practical applications of genetic information
- Which genetic markers matter for athletes
Key Moments
Eero Mantyranta: the skier with a genetic EPO receptor mutation that mimicked doping
Andy Galpin tells the story of Finnish cross-country skier Eero Mantyranta, who won multiple gold medals in the 1960s-70s with a hemoglobin of 20-24 g/dL (normal is 14-15) and hematocrit over 60%. Everyone assumed he was doping, but 25 years later geneticists found he had a rare mutation making his EPO receptors hypersensitive. His EPO levels were normal but his receptors were so sensitive that normal training produced superhuman blood values. His family members shared the mutation.
"his hemoglobin was somewhere between 20 and 24 grams per deciliter. The average person is more like 14 or 15."
Gene doping is real: a German coach went to jail for using Repoxygen on athletes
Galpin discusses gene doping therapy, confirming that over a thousand clinical trials on gene therapy have been conducted. The best example is Repoxygen, a gene therapy designed for anemic patients that enhanced EPO and oxygen delivery. Though only available for about a year, in 2004 a German track and field coach was caught and jailed for using it on his athletes and trying to acquire more after it went off market.
"the answer is absolutely yes. There have been over a thousand clinical trials on gene therapy done, and there have been multiple cases and reports of this being used in sporting context."
Your belief in your genetics may outpace the actual genetic effect
Galpin warns that genetic testing carries psychological risks. Data suggests that people take nutrition and exercise advice based on genetics more seriously than other sources, which can help adherence but also cause hopelessness. Most strikingly, some data show that the impact of your belief in your genetics outpaces the actual genetic effect itself. If a gene improves muscle growth by 5%, your belief that you have that gene might produce more than 5% growth.
"some data actually suggest that the impact of your belief in your genetics outpaces the actual impact of the genetics themselves."
