Physical and Mental Fatigue Reduce Psychomotor Vigilance in Professional Football Players

Purpose: Professional football players experience both physical and mental fatigue (MF). The main aims of this randomized crossover study were to investigate the effect of MF on repeated-sprint ability (RSA) and the effects of both physical fatigue and MF on psychomotor vigilance. Methods: Seventeen male professional football players performed 10 maximal 20-m shuttle sprints interspaced by incomplete recovery (RSA test). Running speed, heart rate, brain oxygenation, and rating of perceived exertion were monitored during each sprint. The RSA test was preceded by either a 30-minute Stroop task to induce MF or by watching a documentary for 30 minutes (control [CON]) in a randomized counterbalanced order. Participants performed a psychomotor vigilance test at baseline, after the cognitive task (MF or CON), and after the RSA test. Results: Heart rate and rating of perceived exertion significantly increased, while running speed and brain oxygenation significantly decreased over the repeated sprints (P .001) with no significant differences between conditions. Response speed during the psychomotor vigilance test significantly declined after the Stroop task but not after CON (P = .001). Response speed during the psychomotor vigilance test declined after the RSA test in both conditions (P .001) and remained lower in the MF condition compared to CON (P = .012). Conclusions: MF does not reduce RSA. However, the results of this study suggest that physical fatigue and MF have negative and cumulative effects on psychomotor vigilance. Therefore, strategies to reduce both physical fatigue and MF should be implemented in professional football players

Effects of deceptive running speed on physiology, perceptual responses, and performance during sprint-distance triathlon

Objective This study examined the effects of speed deception on performance, physiological and perceptual responses, and pacing during sprint-distance triathlon running. Methods Eight competitive triathletes completed three simulated sprint-distance triathlons (0.75 km swim, 20 km bike, 5 km run) in a randomised order, with swimming and cycling sections replicating baseline triathlon performance. During the first 1.66 km of the run participants maintained an imposed speed, completing the remaining 3.33 km as quickly as possible. Although participants were informed that initially prescribed running speed would reflect baseline performance, this was true during only one trial (Tri-Run100%). As such, other trials were either 3% faster (Tri-Run103%), or 3% slower (Tri-Run97%) than baseline during this initial period. Results Performance during Tri-Run103% (1346 ± 108 s) was likely faster than Tri-Run97% (1371 ± 108 s), and possibly faster than Tri-Run100% (1360 ± 125 s), with these differences likely to be competitively meaningful. The first 1.66 km of Tri-Run103% induced greater physiological strain compared to other conditions, whilst perceptual responses were not significantly different between trials. Conclusions It appears that even during ‘all-out’ triathlon running, athletes maintain some form of ‘reserve’ capacity which can be accessed by deception. This suggests that expectations and beliefs have a practically meaningful effect on pacing and performance during triathlon, although it is apparent that an individual’s conscious intentions are secondary to the brains sensitivity to potentially harmful levels of physiological and perceptual strain

Distribution and conservation status of the trees and shrubs of the Polylepis genus (Rosaceae) in the mountains of Argentina

El género Polylepis es endémico de las montañas de Sudamérica. Sus especies frecuentemente dominan la canopia de bosques y arbustales cuya conservación y restauración son una prioridad a nivel continental. En Argentina, el género incluye cinco especies que se distribuyen en las montañas del centro y noroeste del país. Sus distribuciones, amenazas y estados de conservación están poco documentados e incluso existen fuertes controversias sobre el grado en que el Hombre ha impactado en la cobertura, la estructura y la distribución de estos bosques. Para contribuir a revertir esta situación confeccionamos modelos potenciales por especie que sugieren 14800 km2 aptos para la presencia de al menos una de las cinco especies. Evaluamos 490 parcelas de 3600 m2 distribuidas en 43 localidades y para cada especie describimos los bosques en mejor estado de conservación que de manera tentativa podrían usarse como referencia para determinar metas de conservación y en trabajos de restauración. En tres de las cinco especies encontramos evidencias de fuego en más de 60% de las parcelas visitadas. Muchas localidades presentaban suelos con evidencias de erosión y escasa cobertura de vegetación, así como una baja cobertura y complejidad estructural de bosque. Consideramos que Argentina ofrece buenas oportunidades para la conservación y restauración de estos bosques ya que aún quedan grandes extensiones, numerosos relictos, y en muchas áreas la presión antrópica ha disminuido. Es prioritario reducir los fuegos, establecer más y mejores áreas protegidas y, en particular en el noroeste Argentino, tener un mejor conocimiento de la ecología de cada especie y desarrollar métodos para restaurar sus bosques.The genus Polylepis is endemic to the mountains of South America. Species of this genus frequently dominate the canopy of forests and shrublands whose conservation and restoration is a priority at a continental scale. The five species described for Argentina are distributed in the mountains central and northwestern Argentina. Their distribution, threats and conservation status are poorly described and the degree to which humans have impacted their cover, structure and distribution is controversial. We modeled the distribution per species. Models suggest an area of 14800 km2 environmentally suitable for at least one of the five species. We surveyed 490 plots of 3600 m2 distributed in 43 locations and for each species we describe the best preserved forests which could tentatively be used as reference sites when determining conservation and restoration goals. In three of the species we recorded fire evidences in over 60% of the visited plots. Soil erosion was evident in several localities and many forests presented low cover and structural complexity. Argentina provides good opportunities for the conservation and restoration of these forests as there still remain extensive forests, numerous relicts, and in many areas human impacts have been decreasing. It is important to reduce fire events, establish more and better protected areas, to have a better knowledge on the ecology of each species and to develop methods to restore forests, especially in northwestern Argentina.Fil: Renison, Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas y Tecnológicas. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas y Tecnológicas; Argentina. Asociación Civil Ecosistemas Argentinos; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Cuyckens, Griet An Erica. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Cátedra de Ecología de Comunidades; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Pacheco, Silvia. Fundación ProYungas; ArgentinaFil: Guzmán, Gustavo F.. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; ArgentinaFil: Grau, Hector Ricardo. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional.; ArgentinaFil: Marcora, Paula Inés. Asociación Civil Ecosistemas Argentinos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Robledo, Gerardo Lucio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Cingolani, Ana María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; Argentina. Asociación Civil Ecosistemas Argentinos; ArgentinaFil: Domínguez, Julio. Asociación Civil Ecosistemas Argentinos; ArgentinaFil: Landi, Marcos Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Diversidad y Ecología Animal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Diversidad y Ecología Animal; ArgentinaFil: Bellis, Laura Marisa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Diversidad y Ecología Animal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Diversidad y Ecología Animal; ArgentinaFil: Hensen, Isabel. Martin Luther University; Alemani

Effects of caffeine on neuromuscular fatigue and performance during high-intensity cycling exercise in moderate hypoxia

Purpose: To investigate the effects of caffeine on performance, neuromuscular fatigue and perception of effort during high-intensity cycling exercise in moderate hypoxia. Methods: Seven adult male participants firstly underwent an incremental exercise test on a cycle ergometer in conditions of acute normobaric hypoxia (fraction inspired oxygen = 0.15) to establish peak power output (PPO). In the following two visits, they performed a time to exhaustion test (78 ± 3% PPO) in the same hypoxic conditions after caffeine ingestion (4 mg kg$^{−1}$) and one after placebo ingestion in a double-blind, randomized, counterbalanced cross-over design. Results: Caffeine significantly improved time to exhaustion by 12%. A significant decrease in subjective fatigue was found after caffeine consumption. Perception of effort and surface electromyographic signal amplitude of the vastus lateralis were lower and heart rate was higher in the caffeine condition when compared to placebo. However, caffeine did not reduce the peripheral and central fatigue induced by high-intensity cycling exercise in moderate hypoxia. Conclusion: The caffeine-induced improvement in time to exhaustion during high-intensity cycling exercise in moderate hypoxia seems to be mediated by a reduction in perception of effort, which occurs despite no reduction in neuromuscular fatigue

Self-assembled or mixed peptide amphiphile micelles from herpes simplex virus glycoproteins as potential immunomodulatory treatment

The use of micelle aggregates formed from peptide amphiphiles (PAs) as potential synthetic self-adjuvant vaccines to treat Herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection are reported here. The PAs were based on epitopes gB409-505 and gD301-309, selected from HSV envelope glycoprotein B (gB) and glycoprotein D (gD), that had their N-terminus modified with hydrophobic moieties containing two C18 hydrocarbon chains. Pure and mixed micelles of gB and/or gD peptide epitopes were easily prepared after starting with the synthesis of corresponding PAs by solid phase methods. Structural characterization of the aggregates confirmed that they were sufficiently stable and compatible with in vivo use: critical micelle concentration values around 4.0 · 10-7 mol · Kg-1; hydrodynamic radii (RH) between 50-80 nm, and a zeta potential (ζ) around -40 mV were found for all aggregates. The in vitro results indicate that both peptide epitopes and micelles, at 10 μM, triggered U937 and RAW 264.7 cells to release appreciable levels of cytokines. In particular, interleukin (IL)-23-, IL-6-, IL-8- or macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-2-, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α-release increased considerably when cells were treated with the gB-micelles or gD-micelles compared with the production of the same cytokines when the stimulus was the single gB or gD peptid

Low-protein diets for chronic kidney disease patients: The Italian experience

open20Nutritional treatment has always represented a major feature of CKD management. Over the decades, the use of nutritional treatment in CKD patients has been marked by several goals. The first of these include the attainment of metabolic and fluid control together with the prevention and correction of signs, symptoms and complications of advanced CKD. The aim of this first stage is the prevention of malnutrition and a delay in the commencement of dialysis. Subsequently, nutritional manipulations have also been applied in association with other therapeutic interventions in an attempt to control several cardiovascular risk factors associated with CKD and to improve the patient's overall outcome. Over time and in reference to multiple aims, the modalities of nutritional treatment have been focused not only on protein intake but also on other nutrients.openBellizzi, Vincenzo; Cupisti, Adamasco; Locatelli, Francesco; Bolasco, Piergiorgio; Brunori, Giuliano; Cancarini, Giovanni; Caria, Stefania; De Nicola, Luca; Di Iorio, Biagio R; Di Micco, Lucia; Fiaccadori, Enrico; Garibotto, Giacomo; Mandreoli, Marcora; Minutolo, Roberto; Oldrizzi, Lamberto; Piccoli, Giorgina B; Quintaliani, Giuseppe; Santoro, Domenico; Torraca, Serena; Viola, Battista FBellizzi, Vincenzo; Cupisti, Adamasco; Locatelli, Francesco; Bolasco, Piergiorgio; Brunori, Giuliano; Cancarini, Giovanni; Caria, Stefania; De Nicola, Luca; Di Iorio, Biagio R; Di Micco, Lucia; Fiaccadori, Enrico; Garibotto, Giacomo; Mandreoli, Marcora; Minutolo, Roberto; Oldrizzi, Lamberto; Piccoli, Giorgina B; Quintaliani, Giuseppe; Santoro, Domenico; Torraca, Serena; Viola, Battista F

Subjecting Elite Athletes to Inspiratory Breathing Load Reveals Behavioral and Neural Signatures of Optimal Performers in Extreme Environments

Background: It is unclear whether and how elite athletes process physiological or psychological challenges differently than healthy comparison subjects. In general, individuals optimize exercise level as it relates to differences between expected and experienced exertion, which can be conceptualized as a body prediction error. The process of computing a body prediction error involves the insular cortex, which is important for interoception, i.e. the sense of the physiological condition of the body. Thus, optimal performance may be related to efficient minimization of the body prediction error. We examined the hypothesis that elite athletes, compared to control subjects, show attenuated insular cortex activation during an aversive interoceptive challenge. Methodology/Principal Findings: Elite adventure racers (n = 10) and healthy volunteers (n = 11) performed a continuous performance task with varying degrees of a non-hypercapnic breathing load while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging. The results indicate that (1) non-hypercapnic inspiratory breathing load is an aversive experience associated with a profound activation of a distributed set of brain areas including bilateral insula, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulated; (2) adventure racers relative to comparison subjects show greater accuracy on the continuous performance task during the aversive interoceptive condition; and (3) adventure racers show an attenuated right insula cortex response during and following the aversive interoceptive condition of non-hypercapnic inspirator

Germinación y almacenamiento de semillas de especies nativas de interés para la restauración en ambientes serranos de Córdoba: La importancia de aplicar técnicas germinativas estandarizadas

El estado de degradación existente en los ambientes serranos de Córdoba dificulta la regeneración natural de las especies de plantas nativas a partir de semillas. En este contexto, el uso de estrategias de restauración activa es una alternativa cada vez más necesaria, aunque limitada por la falta de conocimiento sobre la ecología de las semillas. En este sentido, la caracterización de los requerimientos óptimos de germinación así como la determinación de la presencia de dormición permiten planificar la siembra en el lugar y momento adecuados. Asimismo, es importante conocer la respuesta de las semillas al almacenamiento para prever la disponibilidad de semillas viables al momento de su utilización. Con este fin, estamos desarrollando una base de datos de características regenerativas de especies nativas de las sierras de Córdoba con interés para la restauración, sobre las cuales se cuenta con escasa información. Para esto, se elaboró un protocolo estándar, siguiendo distintas técnicas germinativas preexistentes, que permite determinar los requerimientos óptimos de temperatura y luz para la germinación, la posible presencia de dormición, y la germinabilidad luego del almacenamiento de las semillas. En semillas recién colectadas de 23 especies pertenecientes a distintas formas de vida (leñosas, herbáceas y gramíneas), se evaluó la germinación inicial en cuatro termo-períodos: 15/5°C, 20/10°C, 25/15°C y 35/20°C, en luz y en oscuridad permanente. En las semillas almacenadas, se evaluó en el termo-período óptimo de germinación de cada especie, el poder germinativo a diferentes tiempos desde su recolección. La mayoría de las especies exhibió una germinación óptima a 25/15ºC. Dentro de las especies leñosas, Senna corymbosa y S. morongii tuvieron los porcentajes de germinación más altos luego de la ruptura de la dormición física (97%). Las leñosas Baccharis alienus, Kageneckia lanceolata, Flourensia thurifera y Solanum palinacathum, la herbácea Perezia multiflora, y la mayoría de las gramíneas estudiadas, tuvieron elevados porcentajes de germinación y no requirieron pretratamientos para germinar. De las especies evaluadas hasta el momento, 11 no presentaron dormición. En las especies restantes se observaron indicios de algún tipo de dormición, por lo cual sería necesario evaluar distintas técnicas pre-germinativas. La mayoría de las especies puede ser almacenada por al menos un año con porcentajes de germinación por encima del 50%, aunque existen importantes variaciones interespecíficas. En algunas herbáceas, como las del género Stevia, se registró un notable aumento en su germinación luego de tres meses de almacenamiento. Nuestros resultados aportan información valiosa sobre la regeneración de numerosas especies nativas de interés para la restauración. Asimismo, muestran la importancia de evaluar un abanico de técnicas germinativas de forma estandarizada para conocer los requerimientos y características de las semillas, información que permitiría maximizar la producción y el establecimiento de plántulas en los proyectos de restauración, aumentando su eficiencia, optimizando los recursos naturales y disminuyendo los costos económicos.Fil: Zeballos, Sebastián Rodolfo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Ferreras, Ana Elisa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Ferrero, Cecilia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Funes, Guillermo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Gallará, Fernando. Provincia de Córdoba. Ministerio de Ciencia y Técnica. Centro de Excelencia en Productos y Procesos de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Giorgis, Melisa Adriana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: López Tapia, M. F.. Provincia de Córdoba. Ministerio de Ciencia y Técnica. Centro de Excelencia en Productos y Procesos de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Maggi, M. E.. Provincia de Córdoba. Ministerio de Ciencia y Técnica. Centro de Excelencia en Productos y Procesos de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Marcora, Paula Inés. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Paiaro, Valeria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Tecco, Paula Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Venier, Maria Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaII Encuentro Nacional de Restauración Ecológica de ArgentinaVilla GiardinoArgentinaRed de Restauración Ecológica Argentin

Risk prediction of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease implies an oligogenic architecture

© 2020, The Author(s). Genetic association studies have identified 44 common genome-wide significant risk loci for late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (LOAD). However, LOAD genetic architecture and prediction are unclear. Here we estimate the optimal P-threshold (Poptimal) of a genetic risk score (GRS) for prediction of LOAD in three independent datasets comprising 676 cases and 35,675 family history proxy cases. We show that the discriminative ability of GRS in LOAD prediction is maximised when selecting a small number of SNPs. Both simulation results and direct estimation indicate that the number of causal common SNPs for LOAD may be less than 100, suggesting LOAD is more oligogenic than polygenic. The best GRS explains approximately 75% of SNP-heritability, and individuals in the top decile of GRS have ten-fold increased odds when compared to those in the bottom decile. In addition, 14 variants are identified that contribute to both LOAD risk and age at onset of LOAD

A Novel Multiplex Cell Viability Assay for High-Throughput RNAi Screening

Cell-based high-throughput RNAi screening has become a powerful research tool in addressing a variety of biological questions. In RNAi screening, one of the most commonly applied assay system is measuring the fitness of cells that is usually quantified using fluorescence, luminescence and absorption-based readouts. These methods, typically implemented and scaled to large-scale screening format, however often only yield limited information on the cell fitness phenotype due to evaluation of a single and indirect physiological indicator. To address this problem, we have established a cell fitness multiplexing assay which combines a biochemical approach and two fluorescence-based assaying methods. We applied this assay in a large-scale RNAi screening experiment with siRNA pools targeting the human kinome in different modified HEK293 cell lines. Subsequent analysis of ranked fitness phenotypes assessed by the different assaying methods revealed average phenotype intersections of 50.7±2.3%–58.7±14.4% when two indicators were combined and 40–48% when a third indicator was taken into account. From these observations we conclude that combination of multiple fitness measures may decrease false-positive rates and increases confidence for hit selection. Our robust experimental and analytical method improves the classical approach in terms of time, data comprehensiveness and cost