Hormonal and psychological influences on performance anxiety in adolescent female volleyball players: a multi-approach study.

Background: The neuroendocrine system has important implications for affiliation behavior among humans and can be used to assess the correlation between social relationships, stress, and health. This can be influenced by social closeness; this aspect is the closeness towards another individual or a group of individuals such as a sports team. Sports performance anxiety is considered an unpleasant emotional reaction composed of physiological, cognitive, affective, and behavioral components. This motivates us to learn about the process that can influence the outcome of competition. Hormones and genetics would seem to influence outcome and performance. In this regard, many studies have focused on the exercise response as a function of ovarian hormones and it has been observed that progesterone is a hormone that plays a key role in reducing anxiety, and thus stress, in humans and other animals. On the other hand, high cortisol concentrations are known to contribute to increased anxiety levels. However, the salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) enzyme has been suggested as marker of acute stress than cortisol. Genetics also seem to influence anxiety and stress management as in the case of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and striatal dopamine transporter (DAT). Therefore, the study aims to investigate social closeness, as a measure of sports team cohesion that can influence athletes' performance results, and its ability to influence the secretion of hormones, such as progesterone and cortisol, that affect the management of sports anxiety while also taking into account genetic background during a volleyball match. Methods: Twenty-six female volleyball players who volunteered participated in this study (mean ± SD: age, 12.07 ± 0.7 years), and played in the final of the provincial volleyball championship in Palermo. All girls were during the ovarian cycle, in detail between the follicular and early ovulatory phases. Results: The results showed a significant decrease in salivary cortisol only in the winning group (p < 0.039). In fact, whilst in the latter the pre-match level was 7.7 ng/ml and then decreased to 4.5 ng/ml after the match, in the losers group change was not statistically significant (7.8 ng/ml vs 6.6 ng/ml pre- and post-match). As to the sAA concentration, the winning team showed a statistically significant variation between pre- and post-match than the losers (166.01 ± 250 U/ml vs 291.59 ± 241 U/ml) (p = 0.01). Conclusion: Analyzing the results of the SAS-2 psychological test it is highlighted that, on average, the loser group was more anxious than the winning group, and this contributed to the final result. In conclusion, there is strong evidence supporting the state of the art that many factors can affect performance anxiety and thus the performance itself.

High-intensity interval training improves bone remodeling, lipid profile, and physical function in multiple sclerosis patients.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating and neurodegenerative disease due to an autoimmune chronic inflammatory response, yet the etiology is currently not completely understood. It is already known that physical activity plays an essential role in improving quality of life, especially in neuropathological conditions. The study was aimed to investigate the possible benefits of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) in bone and lipid metabolism markers, and neuromotor abilities in MS patients. 130 participants were recruited; 16 subjects with MS met the inclusion criteria and were included in the data analysis. The patients were randomly assigned to two groups: a Control group (CG) (34.88 ± 4.45 yrs) that didn't perform any physical activity and the Exercise group (EG) (36.20 ± 7.80 yrs) that performed HIIT protocol. The training program was conducted remotely by a kinesiologist. It was performed three times a week for 8 weeks. At the beginning (T0) and the end of the study (T1) physical function tests, bone remodelling markers, and lipid markers analyses were performed. After 8 weeks of training the wall squat (s) (T0 = 27.18 ± 4.21; T1 = 41.68 ± 5.38, p ≤ 0.01) and Time Up and Go test (s) (T0 = 7.65 ± 0.43; T1 = 6.34 ± 0.38 p ≤ 0.01) performances improved; lipid markers analysis showed a decrease in Total (mg/dl) (T0 = 187.22 ± 15.73; T1 = 173.44 ± 13.03, p ≤ 0.05) and LDL (mg/dl) (T0 = 108 ± 21.08; T1 = 95.02 ± 17.99, p < 0.05) cholesterol levels. Additionally, the levels of osteocalcin (µg/L), a marker of bone formation increased (T0 = 20.88 ± 4.22; T1 = 23.66 ± 6.24, p < 0.05), 25-OH Vitamin D (µg/L) improved after 8 weeks (T0 = 21.11 ± 7.11; T1 = 27.66 ± 7.59, p < 0.05). HIIT had an effect on lower limb strength and gait control, improved bone formation, and lipid management, in MS patients.

MiRNAs Expression Modulates Osteogenesis in Response to Exercise and Nutrition.

In recent years, many articles have been published describing the impact of physical activity and diet on bone health. This review has aimed to figure out the possible epigenetic mechanisms that influence bone metabolism. Many studies highlighted the effects of macro and micronutrients combined with exercise on the regulation of gene expression through miRs. The present review will describe how physical activity and nutrition can prevent abnormal epigenetic regulation that otherwise could lead to bone-metabolism-related diseases, the most significant of which is osteoporosis. Nowadays, it is known that this effect can be carried out not only by endogenously produced miRs, but also through those intakes through the diet. Indeed, they have also been found in the transcriptome of animals and plants, and it is possible to hypothesise an interaction between miRNAs produced by different kingdoms and epigenetic influences on human gene expression. In particular, the key to the activation pathways triggered by diet and physical activity appears to be the activation of Runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2), the expression of which is regulated by several miRs. Among the main miRs involved are exercise-induced miR21 and 21-5p, and food-induced miR 221-3p and 222-3p.

Native and iron-saturated bovine lactoferrin differently hinder migration in a model of human glioblastoma by reverting epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition-like process and inhibiting interleukin-6/STAT3 axis.

Glioblastoma, the most lethal form of brain cancer, is characterized by fast growth, migration and invasion of the surrounding parenchyma, with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-like process being mostly responsible for tumour spreading and dissemination. A number of actors, including cadherins, vimentin, transcriptional factors such as SNAIL, play critical roles in the EMT process. The interleukin (IL)-6/STAT3 axis has been related to enhanced glioblastoma's migration and invasion abilities as well. Here, we present data on the differential effects of native and iron-saturated bovine lactoferrin (bLf), an iron-chelating glycoprotein of the innate immune response, in inhibiting migration in a human glioblastoma cell line. Through a wound healing assay, we found that bLf was able to partially or completely hinder cell migration, depending on its iron saturation rate. At a molecular level, bLf down-regulated both SNAIL and vimentin expression, while inducing a notable increase in cadherins' levels and inhibiting IL-6/STAT3 axis. Again, these effects positively correlated to bLf iron-saturation state, with the Holo-form resulting more efficient than the native one. Overall, our data suggest that bLf could represent a novel and efficient adjuvant treatment for glioblastoma's standard therapeutic approaches.