Evidence of a limb- and shear stress stimulus profile dependent impact of high-intensity cycling training on flow-mediated dilation

Lower limb endurance training can improve conduit artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) in response to transient increases in shear stress (reactive hyperemia; RH-FMD) in both the upper and lower limbs. Sustained increases in shear stress recruit a partially distinct transduction pathway and elicit a physiologically relevant FMD response (SS-FMD) that provides distinct information regarding endothelial function. However, the impact of training on SS-FMD is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of cycling training on handgrip exercise induced brachial artery(BA) FMD (BA SS-FMD) and calf plantar-flexion induced superficial femoral artery (SFA) FMD (SFA SS-FMD). RH-FMD was also assessed in both arteries. 28 young males were randomized to control (n=12) or training (n=16) groups. The training group cycled 30 min/day, 3 days/week for 4 weeks at 80% heart rate reserve. FMD was assessed in the BA and SFA pre- and post-intervention via Duplex ultrasound. Results are mean ±SD. Training did not impact SS-FMD in either artery, and SFA RH-FMD was also unchanged (p>0.05). When controlling for the shear rate stimulus via covariate analysis, BA RH-FMD improved in the training group (p=0.05)(Control: pre- 5.7±2.4%, post- 5.3±2.4%; Training: pre- 5.4±2.5%, post- 7.2±2.4%). Thus, endurance training resulted in non-uniform adaptations to endothelial function, with an isolated impact on the BA’s ability to transduce a transient increase in shear stress. • Training did not alter SS-FMD in the arm or leg. • RH-FMD was augmented in the arm only. • Thus training adaptations were limb and shear stress profile specific.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

Inclusion of female participants in cardiovascular research: a case study of Ontario NSERC-funded programs

This study explored inclusion of female participants in Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Discovery Grant (NSERC-DG)-funded human cardiovascular research at Ontario universities between 2010–2018. Ninety-six publications were examined and 4 principal investigators were interviewed. Females were excluded/underrepresented in 63% of publications with 49% male-only and 5% female-only samples. The sex-bias appears to be explained by dependence on research knowledge and methodologies that maintain and reproduce a firmly established discourse of the male norm. Novelty Female participants were underrepresented in NSERC DG-funded cardiovascular research at Ontario universities between 2010–2018.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

Does the Association Between Self-Reported Restless Sleep and Objective Sleep Efficiency Differ in Obese and Non-Obese Women? Findings From the Kingston Senior Women Study

Our study assessed the validity of self-reported restless sleep (SRRS) in measuring sleep efficiency and the degree to which these measures differed depending on obesity status in older women. Data were from 100 participants enrolled in the Kingston Senior Women Study. Participants recorded SRRS for 7 consecutive nights. Sleep efficiency measures were recorded nightly through actigraphy. Repeated-measures multilevel logistic analysis was used. Mean sleep efficiency was 87% (SE = 1.09), SRRS occurred in 37% (SE = 3) of nights. Obesity status moderated the association between sleep efficiency and SRRS (odds ratio [OR] = 1.08; 95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.02, 1.14]) when controlling for age, medication intake, and depressive symptoms. Higher sleep efficiency reduced the odds of SRRS in non-obese women, but no association was shown in obese women. The lack of correspondence between objective and subjective measures in obese women suggests that SRRS may not be as indicative of sleep quality in obese compared with non-obese older women

The impact of an acute oral phosphate load on endothelium dependent and independent brachial artery vasodilation in healthy males

Serum phosphate levels are associated with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in the general population and endothelial dysfunction may be mechanistically involved. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of acute phosphate supplementation on endothelial-dependent (Flow mediated dilation (FMD)) and -independent (Glyceryl trinitrate (GTN)) vasodilation in young, healthy males. 17 healthy male participants (23Âą3 years old) were exposed to an oral load of phosphate (PHOS; (liquid supplement containing 1200 mg of phosphorous) and placebo (PLAC) over two experimental days. A brachial artery FMD test was performed pre- and 20 min, 60 min and 120 min following the ingestion of the phosphate load or the placebo. GTN tests were performed pre and 140 min post-ingestion. Serum phosphate was not impacted differently by phosphate vs. placebo ingestion (p=0.780). In contrast, urinary phosphate excretion was markedly increased in the PHOS (pThe accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

A pilot cross-sectional investigation of chronic shame as a mediator of the relationship between subjective social status and self-rated health among middle-aged adults

ABSTRACTSubjective social status (SSS) is an important independent predictor of health outcomes, however, the pathways through which it affects health are poorly understood. Chronic shame has previously been suggested as a potential mechanism but this has never been investigated and the relationship between chronic shame and health is under-researched. The purpose of this pilot study was to explore whether chronic shame explains a significant portion of the association between SSS and self rated health (SRH). Two-hundred American adults aged 30–55 years were recruited via a crowd-sourcing platform and were asked to provide information on their SSS, level of chronic shame, and SRH. Chronic shame significantly mediated the relationship between SSS and SRH. This pilot study provides initial evidence that shame explains a significant portion of the relationship between subjective social status and self-rated health. These findings support the initiation of larger, longitudinal investigations into chronic shame as a mediator of the subjective social status and self-rated health relationship