The induction of hypertrophy of cardiac and skeletal muscles has been studied after treatment with two different salbutamol dosages, therapeutic and doping. Treatment of rats subjected to a physical training schedule with repeated doses (16 microg kg(-1) per day or 3 mg kg(-1) per day) of salbutamol, a specific beta-adrenergic agonist, induced a marked increase in both skeletal and heart-muscle weight, whereas total body weight did not change significantly. Adrenergic involvement of salbutamol-linked muscle hypertrophy was demonstrated by co-administration of the non-specific beta-adrenergic antagonist, propranolol (20 mg kg(-1) per day). Salbutamol-induced muscle hypertrophy was associated with an increase in serum, skeletal-muscle and heart levels of the naturally occurring polyamines putrescine, spermidine and spermine. These observations suggest the involvement of polyamines in muscle hypertrophy and the possible role of blood polyamines as exposure biomarkers in beta-adrenergic-muscle hypertrophy.