We describe the construction and validation of novel test systems for detecting androgenic activities using a combination of the yeasts Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe. By applying the reporter enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein (EGFP) the incubation time could be reduced to only 24 h if compared to the classical p-galactosidase reporter (48 h). Both yeast systems were validated by analyzing the effects of seven androgens as well as five anti-androgens. One androgen (stanozolol) could be detected ten times more sensitive in S. cerevisiae than in S. pombe. Three of the five anti-androgenic substances showed no or only a slight effect in both yeast assays. The other two anti-androgens could be detected much better in S. pombe. Additionally, we could show that both yeast assays tolerated 10% urine within the media and still were capable to detect dihydrotestosterone at a concentration of 10(-8) M suggesting the use of the assays for applied doping pre-screening.

In summary, the novel androgen-sensitive yeast assays have a large potential for various applications, e.g. as pre-screening in doping analysis or cattle feeding. A combination of both assays, exploiting these two phylogenetic very different yeasts, allows detection of the activity of a wide range of androgenic substances. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.