CYP1A2 Genotype Polymorphism Influences the Effect of Caffeine on Anaerobic Performance in Trained Males.

The purpose was to investigate the effects of CYP1A2 -163C > A polymorphism on the effects of acute caffeine (CAF) supplementation on anaerobic power in trained males. Sixteen trained males (age: 21.6 ± 7.1 years; height: 179.7 ± 5.6 cm; body mass: 72.15 ± 6.8 kg) participated in a randomized, double-blind, placebo (PLA) controlled crossover design. Participants supplemented with CAF (6 mg/kg of body mass) and an isovolumetric PLA (maltodextrin) in random order and separated by 7 days, before an all-out 30-s anaerobic cycling test to determine peak, average, and minimum power output, and fatigue index. Genomic deoxyribonucleic acid was extracted to identify each participants CYP1A2 genotype. Six participants expressed AA homozygote and 10 expressed C alleles. There was a treatment by genotype interaction for peak power output (p = .041, η2 = .265, observed power = 0.552) with only those expressing AA genotype showing improvement following CAF supplementation compared with PLA (CAF: 693 ± 108 watts vs. PLA: 655 ± 97 watts; p = .039), while no difference between treatments was noted in those expressing C alleles (CAF: 614 ± 92 watts vs. PLA: 659 ± 144 watts; p = .135). There were no other interaction or main effects for average or minimum power output, or fatigue index (p > .05). In conclusion, the ingestion of 6 mg/kg of CAF improved peak power output only in participants with the AA genotype compared with PLA; however, expression of the CYP1A2 did not influence average or minimum power output or fatigue index.

Effects of Physical Activity on Brain Energy Biomarkers in Alzheimer's Diseases.

The prevalence of dementia has substantially increased worldwide. Currently, there is no cure for dementia or Alzheimer's disease (AD), and care for affected patients is financially and psychologically costly. Of late, more attention has been given to preventive interventions-in particular, physical activity/exercise. In this review, examine the risk factors associated with AD and the effects physical activity may play in the prevention of the degenerative process of this disease, loss of memory and cognitive performance in the elderly. To date, research has shown that physical activity, especially aerobic exercise, has a protective effect on cognitive function and memory in the elderly and Alzheimer's patients. In comparison with aerobic exercise, several strength training studies have also shown positive effects, and the rare studies that compare the two different modalities show no difference.

Effects of six weeks of resistance-endurance training on microRNA-29 expression in the heart of ovariectomised rats.

INTRODUCTION: Heart disease risk rises with age. However, women's symptoms become more pronounced following the onset of menopause. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of six weeks of combined resistance-endurance (RE) training on microRNA-29 expression in the heart of ovariectomised rats. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty female Wistar rats were divided into three groups: 1) sham (SHAM); 2) ovariectomy (OVX); and 3) OVX with RE training (OVX + RE). The effects of these treatments on cardiac microRNA-29 expression were measured using real-time PCR. Data were analysed using a 2 × 3 ANOVA and Tukey post-hoc comparisons and presented as mean ±SEM. RESULTS: Ovariectomy resulted in a significant down-regulation in the heart microRNA-29 gene expression of OVX (0.265 ±0.031 fold changes), OVX + RE (0.699 ±0.038 fold changes) in animals vs. sham animals (1 ±0 fold changes; all, p < 0.05) following six weeks of treatment. However, microRNA-29 expression in the OVX + RE group was significantly greater than in the OVX group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that the six weeks of regular RE training attenuate the reduction in heart muscle microRNA-29 expression observed in ovariectomised rates. If our findings carry over to humans, such an exercise regimen could be beneficial to the cardiovascular disease risk in women during menopause.

Effect of combined endurance-resistance training and soy extract supplementation on expression of eNOS gene in ovariectomized rats.

INTRODUCTION: Menopause is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Physical exercise and soybean diets have been suggested to reduce the risk of CVD in postmenopausal women. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of combined resistance and endurance (RE) training and soy extract (SOY) supplementation, both known to improve endothelial function, on expression of the eNOS gene in the heart of ovariectomized (OVX) rats. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Fifty female Wistar rats were divided into five groups: 1) sham (SHAM); 2) ovariectomy (OVX); 3) ovariectomy with soy extract supplementation (OVX + SOY); 4) OVX with RE training (OVX + RE); 5) and ovariectomy plus RE training with soy extract supplementation (OVX + RE + SOY). RE training and soy extract supplementation were administered alone or in combination for 6 weeks. The effects of these treatments on cardiac eNOS expression were measured using real-time PCR. RESULTS: Ovariectomy down-regulated cardiac eNOS gene expression; however, 6 weeks of SOY treatment or RE training reversed this effect (p ≤ 0.05). The combination of SOY plus RE was greater than RE or SOY alone in reversing estrogen-deficiency-caused eNOS down-regulation (p ≤ 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that the combinatory regimen of soy extract supplementation and regular RE training may be more beneficial to cardiovascular disease risk in a menopause rat model than either exercise or soy supplementation alone.

Effects of short-term dehydroepiandrosterone supplementation on body composition in young athletes.

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is often promoted as a slimming and weight/fat loss agent and ingestion of DHEA may have hypolipidemic and anti-obesity properties. The main aim of this study was to examine the effects of acute DHEA intake on body composition and serum steroid hormones in young athletes. Twenty young (19 to 22 years) male soccer players were allocated into two randomly assigned trials in double-blind design by ingesting 100-mg daily oral DHEA or as placebo (PLA) for 28 days. Body mass was not affected by 4 weeks of DHEA supplementation (P > 0.05). No significant changes in body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and body fat or total muscle mass for the two groups were detected at the end of the trial (P > 0.05). There was no within- or between-group difference in arm fat index (AFI) and corrected mid-upper-arm muscle area (cAMA) (P > 0.05). Treatment with DHEA resulted in a significant increase of total testosterone, estradiol and DHEA-S levels in treated subjects versus the placebo group (P < 0.05). Results of this study suggest that DHEA supplementation has no beneficial effects on body composition in young competitive athletes.

The effects of a 4-week coffeeberry supplementation on antioxidant status, endurance, and anaerobic performance in college athletes.

The main aim of this investigation was to evaluate the changes in total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and aerobic and anaerobic performance induced by supplementation of coffeeberry (CB) formulation for 4 weeks in college athletes. Twenty college athletes (14 males and 6 females) were allocated to two randomly assigned trials. Subjects in the CB group orally ingested capsules that contained CB formulation at a dose of 800 mg per day in two equal doses for 28 days, while subjects in the placebo (P) group ingested an equal number of identical-looking caps that contained cellulose. There were no changes in glucose, cholesterol, and lipoproteins within or between trials (p > 0.05). Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) was significantly higher in the CB versus P trial at the post- supplementation trial (1.66 +/- 0.16 vs. 1.51 +/- 0.05 mmol/L; p < 0.05). There were no statistically significant changes in average anaerobic power, index of anaerobic fatigue, maximal heart rate, blood lactate, and maximal oxygen uptake within or between trials (p > 0.05). Heart rate recovery (HRR) index increased significantly in CB group as compared with baseline level (38 +/- 4 vs. 32 +/- 5 beats/min; p < 0.05). Blood lactate after 10 min of recovery (Lact(rec)) significantly decreased in the CB group after supplementation protocol as compared with initial results (7.6 +/- 4.2 vs. 5.5 +/- 2.6 mmol/L; p < 0.05). No subject reported any side effects from CB or P. The results of the present study indicate that supplementation with a CB formulation slightly increased antioxidant capacity, but there were minimal effects on recovery parameters after exercise in college athletes.

The effects of vitamin E and vitamin C supplementation on bioenergetics index.

In order to study the effects of vitamin E and vitamin C supplementation on the bioenergetic index, 36 male physical education students were selected nonrandomly and assigned to a different supplementation protocol. The average age, weight, height, and fat percentage were 22.48 +/- 1.84 years, 64.93 +/- 7.84 kg, 175.4 +/- 5.66 cm, and 10.94 +/- 5.29%, respectively. The period of supplementation lasted 3 weeks. The subjects from group 1 consumed a daily dose of 400 mg of vitamin E, subjects from group 2 ingested 1000 mg of vitamin C, subjects from group 3 ingested 400 mg of vitamin E along with 1000 mg of vitamin C, and subjects from group 4 (control group) consumed a placebo. The tests applied were the running anaerobic sprint test (RAST) and the Cooper 12-min run test. The results indicate that there were no significant differences between groups during the study in anaerobic power assessed by RAST. We found a significant difference between group's, however, in aerobic power (p < 0.05). We concluded that daily consumption of vitamin E, vitamin C, and a combination of vitamin E and vitamin C for a period of 3 week significantly improved aerobic power.