OTTAWA -- A Toronto doctor with ties to Tiger Woods has been charged with selling an unapproved drug that can be considered performance-enhancing.

Anthony Galea, 51, was charged Wednesday with selling Actovegin, a drug extracted from calf's blood, which is illegal for sale in Canada and is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency if used intravenously.

The RCMP allege that Dr. Galea illegally imported and smuggled drugs into Canada. They said the drugs, which are not approved by Health Canada, were administered to patients. Dr. Galea is also alleged to have conspired to export the drugs to the US.

While Actovegin is meant to promote healing, it is also believed to improve stamina and first came to the attention of the anti-doping authorities several years ago when some elite cyclists were found to be using it, according to a report in the New York Times.

Although there is no suggestion that Mr. Woods was given Actovegin or any other unapproved or banned drug, he did use Dr. Galea's cutting-edge injury-healing procedure called platelet-rich plasma therapy, popularly known as blood-spinning.

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