Tetrahydrogestrinone
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| Clinical data | |
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| Routes of administration |
Oral, intramuscular injection |
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| Synonyms | Tetrahydrogestrinone, THG, The Clear |
| CAS Number |
618903-56-3 
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| PubChem (CID) | 6857686 |
| DrugBank |
DB06870 
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| ChemSpider |
5257020
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| Chemical and physical data | |
| Formula | C21H28O2 |
| Molar mass | 312.46 g/mol |
| 3D model (Jmol) | Interactive image |
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Tetrahydrogestrinone (THG), often referred to as The Clear, is an anabolic steroid developed by Patrick Arnold. It has affinity to the androgen receptor and the progesterone receptor, but not to the estrogen receptor. It was used by a number of high-profile athletes such as Marion Jones and Dwain Chambers.
Tetrahydrogestrinone was developed completely in secret by Arnold as a designer drug, on the basis that doping testers would be unlikely to detect a totally new compound. Arnold developed a chemical similar to two obscure steroids marketed by BALCO, norbolethone and desoxymethyltestosterone, which had been reported in scientific literature but never entered mass production, and the banned anabolic steroids trenbolone and gestrinone, the latter of which was used to synthesise it.
In 2003, whistleblower Trevor Graham passed a spent syringe containing a small amount of the drug to the United States Anti-Doping Agency. This was then transferred to the research group of pharmacologist Don Catlin, who identified the drug using mass spectrometry techniques and gave it its present name.
Tetrahydrogestrinone has never been fully tested for safety and has never entered legitimate medical use, although some studies have been made of its properties. A synthesis was devised to ensure a source of material for comparison and it was scheduled by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2005. Concerns have also been raised about its potential use in animals such as in horse-racing.
Tetrahydrogestrinone is a highly potent agonist for the androgen and progesterone receptors, around 10 times more potent than the comparison drugs nandrolone or trenbolone, but with no estrogenic activity. It has been found to bind to the androgen receptor with similar affinity to dihydrotestosterone and produces growth of muscle tissue. According to Patrick Arnold, due to the drug's potency, he never had to supply significant quantities to BALCO, because "just a couple of drops under the tongue" were a sufficient dose.
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