Frank -

Thanks. I had seen this article before, but went back and read it more carefully after you posted the link. Natalie Voss does good work, going deeper than most horse racing writers. Even here, however, the discussion of SGF-1000 is mostly about what claims are made, not about evidence of what it contains or does. People seem to be treating it as Jason Servis's "juice." Rick Arthur expresses skepticism about how effective it is in his interview, and Chuck Simon seemed to do the same on Steve Byk's show yesterday.

One possibility is that it is like chondroitin and glucosamine, which are natural chemicals found in joint cartilage and also marketed in supplements. A lot of people swear by the supplements as a means of reducing joint pain. The evidence seems to be that, in most cases, the supplement is no more effective than a placebo.

Another possibility is that SGF-1000 contains the growth factors described in the indictment and that those growth factors enhance performance by improving joint health.

A third possibility is that either the growth factors mentioned or some other unidentified components improve performance or endurance by another means. I am reminded of a friend who had prostate cancer and opted against a doctor-recommended treatment (due to virility effects) in favor or an herbal concoction that brought his PSA levels down. It turns out the herbal concoction had something in it that only affected detected PSA levels and not the underlying cancer, which metastasized to his brain.

I am not trying to defend Jason Servis or to deny that he got improbable jump-ups. I've never been on a backside, but I get the impression that a lot of random experimentation with poorly understood treatments goes on there. A more controlled environment, with a better understanding by all of what is and should be used and what effects result, would be preferable.