2. MARCO TEÓRICO
2.2. MARCO CONCEPTUAL
2.2.5. FACTORES DE RIESGOS CARDIOVASCULARES
By Patrick Arnold
www.fantamag.com
www.fantamag.com
I then quickly ran around the bio and chem libraries at U of I for the rest of the afternoon (this was before one could just easily look stuff up on Internet databases), collecting all the articles I could find on 1-testosterone and 1-androstenedione. I was doubly delighted when I found out that these delta-1 compounds are somewhat resistant to liver first-pass degrada- tion, which meant that not only was this a highly anabolic compound, but it may have more oral activity than your typical prohormone.
Now the easy part was done. It took only about a day to collect most all of the research concerning the pharma- cology of 1-androstenedione and 1- testosterone. Now I had to figure out how to make the stuff. That actually took the better part of a whole year, believe it or not. Of course today, I know how to whip up highly pure 1- androstenedione by a very simple process I have since developed, but back then I had to screw around with nasty, smelly chemicals like bromine and DMF only to end up with a sticky mess that would not crystallize. Countless times I tried the reactions, making modifications each time until I was able to come up with a decent crystalline product.
I tested some of the stuff out on some local guys and they came back to me with raving reports of strength and mass. I could see just by looking at the guys that the stuff was working. However, they reported some not-so- good things like stomach discomfort and burning sensations. It did not take long for me to realize I had to do something to minimize these things, so I investigated making 1-androstene- diol, which is another 1-testosterone precursor. Unfortunately the dione to diol reaction (normally a simple one and the same one we used to make 4- androstenediol from 4-androstene- dione) was not working right. I was ending up with about 50 percent of a DHT precursor as a side product. After wracking my brain, I finally called the company that makes the chemical reagent used in the process and explained my problem. They suggest- ed I try adding some Cerous Chloride to the reaction and I did. Voila! I got highly pure 1-androstenediol.
I named the product 1-AD and of course it ended up being a huge hit. It not only put Ergopharm on the map, but it revolutionized and revitalized the whole prohormone industry. And since we made it ourselves, we had exclu- sivity on the stuff for practically a year. Eventually all kinds of people came out with 1-testosterone products, but still the 1-AD remained the best bang for the buck. By constantly working on new ways to make it, we were able to lower cost well below that which China was offering their stuff for. With the profits from 1-AD, we were able to build our own 40,000- square foot, custom-built headquarters complete with full chemical production facility, well-equipped lab, contract manufacturing production lines and ample office space. We changed the name of our company from LPJ research to Proviant Technologies. We had come a long way, all thanks to 1- AD (and a little bit to 6-oxo as well, which was the first anti-aromatase supplement to hit the market).
Of course researching and develop- ing synthetic processes for products like 1-AD and 6-OXO was not the only thing I was doing in the lab. At off- times and after hours, I would also cook up synthetic stuff such as norbo- lethone, and I had made some con- tacts in the amateur and professional sporting world. These contacts were looking for undetectable performance enhancers (steroids mainly) and I was willing to oblige them. I was not look- ing to make a lot of money; I was mostly just interested in seeing what these things could do for the athletes. And naturally, when a trainer or whomever would report very positive feedback, I felt a sense of accomplish- ment. I felt that I had made someone very pleased and it almost seemed like a positive thing to me. I did not think too much about the ethical issues at the time, and justified everything by reminding myself that this cat-and- mouse crap was just part of the mod- ern world of sports. I was competing against other doctors or chemists or self-taught gurus out there who were helping the competition.
Not everyone I dealt with was pleased with my work, however. There was this one guy in Europe
who worked with a high-level bicycle racing team. I met the guy when he e- mailed me and like everyone else, he was looking for a chemical edge. I supplied the guy with norbolethone and THG, and after trying the stuff out on his cyclists he was extremely satis- fied. His team was winning races. One day he told me he needed more, so I made more. I mixed some THG up for the guy in proplyene glycol and put it in a large plastic bottle. Only, I did not use a fresh plastic bot- tle because I was in a hurry and could not find one. Instead, I took a large bottle that stored some noran- drostenedione. I emptied it out and washed it with some methanol and some soap and water.
In retrospect, I could not believe how stupid I was. I knew how sensitive the doping tests were for nandrolone metabolites and I knew that an infinite- ly small amount of norandrostene- dione would give a nandrolone posi- tive. But my impatience and laziness got the better of me and I used the norandrostenedione anyway, thinking that if I just cleaned it out well it would be fine. Anyway, a few weeks went by and then I got an e-mail from the train- er. He was in a panic; one of his ath- letes had tested positive for nan- drolone!! He told me it had to be the stuff I sent him. I told him he had to be wrong; I thought I knew the stuff I made was fine. The next day I got another e-mail; another athlete was positive! He was beside himself with distress. I still denied it was my stuff. Then perhaps two more days went by and I got another e-mail. His entire team tested positive! He told me he was ruined and that his coaching career was destroyed and he had been utterly disgraced. It was at that time that I thought hard and remembered the norandrostenedione bottle. I felt absolutely awful. I tried to help a guy out and I ended up destroying his life. I tried to help him concoct a cover story involving flax oil and contamina- tion, but of course there was no way that would be accepted. I don’t where the guy is today. I hope he didn‘t shoot himself or something.
That’s it for this month. Come back next month for some crazy stuff about BALCO and chemistry and Feds. www.musculardevelopment.com January 2009