Prohibited substance comes up often in conversation and rarely with the context attached. Here we lay out the basics in order, then work through the practical considerations.
Updated 2025-11-04. Numbers and descriptions here follow the published literature rather than marketing material.
Legal status varies by country. In some places, cardarine is controlled under medicines or psychoactive substances laws; in others, it may be sold with minimal oversight as a research chemical. Customs agencies have intercepted shipments, and several national health agencies have issued warnings about products marketed for bodybuilding or performance enhancement. The lack of a standardized pharmaceutical supply means identity, purity, and contamination levels can differ widely between samples. These factors make cardarine a regulatory and public health concern rather than a conventional prescription drug.
Cardarine is a common name for GW501516, a synthetic compound first described in the 1990s as a selective agonist of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta. It was studied in preclinical models for metabolic and cardiovascular conditions, but it has not been approved as a medicine in the United States, Europe, or other major jurisdictions. Retail products labeled as cardarine are generally research chemicals or supplements, not pharmaceutical formulations. Because human safety and efficacy data remain limited, regulatory agencies treat it as an unapproved substance rather than a therapeutic product.
Regulatory bodies treat GW501516 as a prohibited substance in competitive sport. The World Anti-Doping Agency added it to the prohibited list, and it falls under classes covering metabolic modulators and hormone-related agents. It is not approved by drug regulators for human use, and it is not a lawful dietary supplement. Products sold under the cardarine name may contain unlisted ingredients or different compounds. Because no approved product exists, quality and identity are not guaranteed by pharmaceutical manufacturing standards.
Cardarine is a common name for the investigational chemical GW501516, also written GW-1516. It was developed as a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta agonist for metabolic conditions such as dyslipidemia. Early research focused on lipid handling and energy use in skeletal muscle and other tissues. The compound was never approved as a medicine. In public discussion, it is often grouped with performance-enhancing substances, although its receptor target differs from that of anabolic steroids or selective androgen receptor modulators. Regulatory and health authorities have issued warnings about its use.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| IUPAC name | {4-[({4-methyl-2-[4-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]-1,3-thiazol-5-yl}methyl)sulfanyl]phenoxy}acetic acid | Systematic name for GW501516 |
| CAS Registry Number | 317318-70-0 | Unique identifier for the parent compound |
| Molecular formula | C21H18F3NO3S2 | Includes carbon, hydrogen, fluorine, nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur |
| Molecular weight | 453.5 g/mol | Approximate value for the neutral form |
| Appearance | White to off-white powder | Typical description for purified laboratory material |
In this process, uranium hexafluoride is repeatedly diffused through a silver-zinc membrane, and the different isotopes of uranium are separated by diffusion rate (since uranium-238 is heavier it diffuses slightly slower than uranium-235). The molecular laser isotope separation method employs a laser beam of precise energy to sever the bond between uranium-235 and fluorine. This leaves uranium-238 bonded to fluorine and allows uranium-235 metal to precipitate from the solution. An alternative laser method of enrichment is known as atomic vapor laser isotope separation (AVLIS) and employs visible tunable lasers such as dye lasers. Another method used is liquid thermal diffusion. The only significant deviation from the 235U to 238U ratio in any known natural samples occurs in Oklo, Gabon, where natural nuclear fission reactors consumed some of the 235U some two billion years ago when the ratio of 235U to 238U was more akin to that of low enriched uranium allowing regular ("light") water to act as a neutron moderator akin to the process in humanmade light water reactors. The existence of such natural fission reactors which had been theoretically predicted beforehand was proven as the slight deviation of 235U concentration from the expected values were discovered during uranium enrichment in France.
== Further reading == Press Conference by professor Samuel S. Epstein M.D. 1999-05-31 World Trade Organization (2000). Dispute Settlement Reports 1998. Cambridge University Press. p. 79. ISBN 0-521-78895-1. Galbraith, H. (December 2002). "Hormones in international meat production: biological, sociological and consumer issues". Nutrition Research Reviews. 15 (2). CABI Publishing: 293–314. doi:10.1079/NRR200246. PMID 19087409. M. Ellin Doyle. "Human Safety of Hormone Implants Used to Promote Growth in Cattle". National Cattlemen's Foundation. Archived from the original (Microsoft Word) on 7 May 2006. J. J. Kastner & R. K. Pawsey (29 November 2001). "Harmonising sanitary measures and resolving trade disputes through the WTO–SPS framework. Part I: a case study of the US–EU hormone-treated beef dispute" (PDF). Food Control. 13. Elsevier Science Ltd.: 49–55. doi:10.1016/S0956-7135(01)00023-8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 May 2004. Tim Josling; Donna Roberts & Ayesha Hassan (12 April 2000). "The Beef-Hormone Dispute and its Implications for Trade Policy" (PDF). Stanford University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2007. Grace Skogstad (September 2001). "The WTO and Food Safety Regulatory Policy Innovation in the European Union". Journal of Common Market Studies. 39 (3): 485–505. doi:10.1111/1468-5965.00300. Christina L. Davis (2003). "Battles over Beef: The Beef Hormone Dispute". Food Fights Over Free Trade: How International Institutions Promote Agricultural Trade Liberalization. Princeton University Press. pp. 321–337. ISBN 0-691-11505-2.
Raymond’s “micro-mosaics” evoked pointillism and the yet-to-come pixellation. Raymond worked with a plank of wood on his lap, a magnifying glass in one hand and a paintbrush or a dip pen in the other. He would cut the tip of the nib so he could reproduce the tesserae perfectly.
=== Ecology === Under natural conditions Brucella spp, including B. canis are obligate parasites and do not grow outside the host except in laboratory cultures. However, at specific temperatures and moisture levels Brucella can persist in soil and surface water up to 80 days. The bacterium can also survive for months in frozen conditions. B. canis is mainly found in dogs, but can also affect other wild canine species such as wolves, foxes, and coyotes. The bacterium persists in these hosts, being an adaptive pathogen towards canines. The environment these hosts reside in further contribute to the canine specificity. Dog kennels are a favored environment for the bacterium to spread due to transmission through urine and reproductive fluids. Movement of infected animals through pet trade or shelter transport also plays a critical role in the broader distribution of the bacterium. In wildlife, B. canis is also circulated through hunting and scavenging. Zoonotic transmission to humans is rare but possible, particularly for people in close contact with infected reproductive tissues. Certain occupations are at higher risk of exposure to B. canis. These persons include veterinarians, kennel workers, dog breeders, and laboratory personnel.
The American kestrel is likely the most abundant falcon in North America, although its total population is difficult to quantify, as local populations can change quickly due to resource availability. Count data from the USGS Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) indicate that the North American breeding population is experiencing long-term and gradual but sustained declines, with some regions, such as New England and coastal California, exhibiting more rapid declines. Count data from raptor migration corridors also indicate regional population declines and largely corroborate BBS data. The North American population has been estimated at 1.2 million pairs, with the Central and South American populations being as large. A smaller estimate is 236,000 birds wintering in North America. A population increase occurred in the 18th and 19th centuries, probably due to deforestation for agriculture. The resulting pastures provided an ideal habitat for kestrels. As of its 2025 IUCN assessment, the global population of American kestrels is estimated to be 9.2 million mature individuals. The southeastern U.S. subspecies (Falco sparverius paulus) has declined 82% since 1940 due to a decrease in nest site availability. This decline is a result of longleaf pines being cleared for agricultural fields. Despite this, the American kestrel is classed as least concern on the IUCN Red List. The Peregrine Fund, a leading non-profit organization advancing research and conservation of birds of prey worldwide, launched the American Kestrel Partnership in 2012.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
=== Acquisition by Take-Two Interactive (2024–present) === Take-Two Interactive announced its plans to acquire Gearbox Entertainment and its intellectual properties from Embracer Group for $460 million on March 28, 2024, to be added under the 2K label. The acquisition also includes Gearbox Software with its satellite studios and Gearbox Publishing. Embracer will retain Gearbox San Francisco, Gearbox Shanghai, Lost Boys Interactive, Captured Dimensions, and Cryptic Studios, along with publishing rights to Remnant, Hyper Light Breaker, and other unannounced titles. Less than a day after the announcement, it was reported that an unknown number of employees were laid off from Gearbox. On June 12, 2024, Take-Two Interactive closed the Gearbox Software transaction.
The proliferation of such technology could also make the production of biological and chemical weapons available to a wider array of state and non-state actors. These security issues may be avoided by regulating industry uses of biotechnology through policy legislation. Federal guidelines on genetic manipulation are being proposed by "the President's Bioethics Commission ... in response to the announced creation of a self-replicating cell from a chemically synthesized genome, put forward 18 recommendations not only for regulating the science ... for educating the public".
Gilbert Frankau writer Pamela Frankau (3 January 1908 – 8 June 1967) popular novelist from a prominent artistic and literary family who wrote over thirty novels; grandmother was novelist Julia Frankau; father was Gilbert Frankau; partner was Italian-Jewish poet Humbert Wolfe. Sally Herbert Frankel (1903–1996) author of over five influential texts on economics and colonial settlement in South Africa; Professor of Colonial Economic Affairs and Economics of Underdeveloped Countries at Oxford University in period following Second World War; originally from South Africa, of German-Jewish descent, he moved to England after the Second World War. He joined the Mont Pelerin Society in 1950. Frankel was committed to principle of Jewish peoplehood and was keen Zionist. Ronald Frankenberg (1929–2015); anthropologist and sociologist, known for his study of conflict and decision-making and development of medical anthropology; was member of Manchester School of British Social Anthropology; was married to Dr. Pauline Frankenberg (née Hunt), author of Gender and Class Consciousness (1980). One of his daughters was sociologist Ruth Frankenberg. Ruth Frankenberg (1957–2007); social scientist and feminist, known for her pioneering work in field of whiteness studies; author of White Women, Race Matters: The Social Construction of Whiteness; prolific contributor to many journals on the study of whiteness, including her essay The Mirage of an Unmarked Whiteness.
In one study, disk diffusion method proved concentration-dependent antifungal activity against Trichophyton, Microsporum and Epidermophyton, three of the most common species of dermatophytes that cause superficial fungal infections of human skin. Further research is needed, however, to examine the role of sangre de grado from Croton lechleri as an effective antifungal agent in animal and human models. Antiviral activity against influenza, parainfluenza, Herpes simplex viruses I and II, and Hepatitis A and B by Croton lechleri extracts and compounds have been exhibited. The most notable compound involved in antiviral activity is SP-303, also known as crofelemer, which has been heavily studied in vitro for its antiviral activity against the aforementioned viruses, as well as thymidine kinase mutants of HSV-1 and HSV-2 and acyclovir-resistant strains. Antidiarrhoeal Activity Crofelemer, a purified proanthocyanidin oligomer extracted from the sap of Croton lechleri has been investigated for potential antidiarrhoeal activity. Various clinical studies have confirmed significant improvement in acute E. coli and V. cholera diarrhea cases from the administration of crofelemer. In the context of the principal luminal membrane determinants of intestinal fluid secretion, the mechanism of crofelemer action involves the inhibition of apical membrane cAMP-stimulated (CFTR) and calcium-stimulated (CaCC) Cl− channels by crofelemer molecules, with little effect on cation channels or cAMP/calcium signaling.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
No. Major drug regulators have not approved GW501516 for treating any medical condition. Products sold as cardarine are typically unapproved research chemicals or supplements, so their contents and safety are not assured.
It is prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency as a hormone and metabolic modulator. Athletes who test positive for GW501516 can face sanctions, including suspensions and loss of results.
Cardarine is a common or trade-style name, while GW501516 is the research code for the same chemical entity. Some sources also use Endurobol or GSK-516. The names refer to the same compound, not distinct drugs.
No. Cardarine is a PPARδ agonist, while selective androgen receptor modulators act on androgen receptors. The two classes differ in receptor target and downstream effects.