The Stress of Competing: Cortisol and Amylase Response to Training and Competition

TeamGym is a popular form of gymnastics, including tumbling (Tu), trampette (Tr) and floor exercises (F) characterized by intensive practice placing high levels of stress on athletes. The aim of the study was to investigate athletes’ stress-related changes during TeamGym training and competition, considering hormonal and enzymatic responses (i.e., salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase). Ten (5 males and 5 females) TeamGym athletes (age: 22–28 y) were tested twice at the same time before training and competition; furthermore, for excluding circadian effect on hormonal and enzymatic responses, they were tested at the same time during a rest day. Alpha-amylase and cortisol were measured 15 min before the beginning of exercise, after each gymnastic equipment performance, and after thirty minutes from the end of the performance. Factorial ANOVA with repeated measures was used to verify differences between training and competition (p < 0.05). Competition elicited higher values of alpha-amylase than training (p ranging from 0.001 to 0.019) and rest (p ranging from 0.001 to 0.019). Cortisol showed no exercise induced increase, and its concentrations were higher prior to training compared to competition. TeamGym responses confirm other sports findings in stating that competition elicits higher stress response than training and suggest that salivary alpha-amylase is a more sensitive marker than cortisol to psychophysiological stress also in gymnastics intermittent performance

The Stress of Competing: Cortisol and Amylase Response to Training and Competition

TeamGym is a popular form of gymnastics, including tumbling (Tu), trampette (Tr) and floor exercises (F) characterized by intensive practice placing high levels of stress on athletes. The aim of the study was to investigate athletes&rsquo; stress-related changes during TeamGym training and competition, considering hormonal and enzymatic responses (i.e., salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase). Ten (5 males and 5 females) TeamGym athletes (age: 22&ndash;28 y) were tested twice at the same time before training and competition; furthermore, for excluding circadian effect on hormonal and enzymatic responses, they were tested at the same time during a rest day. Alpha-amylase and cortisol were measured 15 min before the beginning of exercise, after each gymnastic equipment performance, and after thirty minutes from the end of the performance. Factorial ANOVA with repeated measures was used to verify differences between training and competition (p &lt; 0.05). Competition elicited higher values of alpha-amylase than training (p ranging from 0.001 to 0.019) and rest (p ranging from 0.001 to 0.019). Cortisol showed no exercise induced increase, and its concentrations were higher prior to training compared to competition. TeamGym responses confirm other sports findings in stating that competition elicits higher stress response than training and suggest that salivary alpha-amylase is a more sensitive marker than cortisol to psychophysiological stress also in gymnastics intermittent performance

Motor Creativity and Self-Efficacy in Young Gymnasts: Expertise Differences

The expression of original and functional motor actions (e.g. motor creativity) has been associated to various self-concept constructs such as self-efficacy (Richard et al., 2018). The aim of the present study was to investigate how motor creativity and self-efficacy could change according to gymnastics practice years. Thirty-five young gymnasts (N = 17 élite; N = 18 recreational) participated in the study. Gymnasts performed the motor creativity tests (Bertsch, 1983) and they were administered the self-efficacy in physical activities inventory (Morano et al., 2019). Analyses of variance showed significant differences in all creativity dimensions (i.e. fluency, flexibility and originality) with flexibility showing the lowest differences between groups. Furthermore, élite gymnasts showed higher values both in bench than in floor and hoop creativity tasks, than recreational group. Significant differences between groups emerged in self-efficacy levels too, with élite gymnasts showing higher values than recreational gymnasts. Finally, creativity and selfefficacy resulted more related in élite gymnasts than in recreational ones. Motor creativity interventions could help both élite and recreational gymnasts to perform a greater variety and adaptability of movement solutions to achieve a task goal also in advancing technical expertise

Povezanost prednatjecateljske anksioznosti, samoučinkovitosti i straha od ozljeđivanja kod vrhunskih teamgym natjecatelja

The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between state anxiety, self-efficacy and fear of injury in national and European TeamGym competitions. A cross-sectional study design was employed using measures of anxiety, self-efficacy and fear of injury. Fourteen (seven men and seven women) Italian TeamGym athletes (age 26±3 yrs) filled in the Self-efficacy for Physical Abilities Scale and the Gymnastics Fear Inventory during their pre-competitive period and the State Anxiety Inventory immediately before every competition. The competition level showed a positive effect on state anxiety, with the highest values emerging during the European Championship. Fear of injury and self-efficacy explained 43% and 68% of the variance in an athlete’s anxiety, respectively. The present findings indicate that self-efficacy dampens the anxiety level of TeamGym athletes and mediates the effects of fear of injury on anxiety prior to their competition, with athletes who experience less fear of being injured and are more confident in their technical abilities and therefore show a lesser degree of pre-competitive anxiety.Cilj je ovog istraživanja bio istražiti povezanost između stanja anksioznosti, samoučinkovitosti i straha od ozljeđivanja u gimnastičara koji nastupaju na nacionalnim i europskim natjecanjima u grupnoj gimnastici (TeamGym). Provedeno je transverzalno istraživanje korištenjem mjera anksioznosti, samoučinkovitosti i straha od ozljeđivanja. Četrnaest talijanskih natjecatelja u grupnoj gimnastici (7 muškaraca i 7 žena) u dobi od 26±3 godine testirano je sljedećim upitnicima: Self-efficacy for Physical Abilities Scale te Gymnastics Fear Inventory, tijekom prednatjecateljskog perioda, te State Anxiety Inventory neposredno prije svakog natjecanja. Pokazalo se da je razina natjecanja pozitivno povezana sa stanjem anksioznosti s najvišim vrijednostima zabilježenima tijekom europskog prvenstva. Pomoću straha od ozljeđivanja i samoučinkovitosti objašnjeno je ukupno 43% odnosno 68% varijance sportaševih stanja anksioznosti. Rezultati ovog istraživanja pokazuju da samo-učinkovitost snižava razinu anksioznosti u natjecatelja u grupnoj gimnastici. Nadalje, samoučinkovitost postaje posrednik između straha od ozljeđivanja i anksioznosti prije natjecanja na način da se natjecatelji koji osjećaju manje straha od ozljeđivanja više pouzdaju u svoje tehničke kvalitete te stoga pokazuju i manju razinu prednatjecateljske anksioznosti

Urinary Biomarkers: Diagnostic Tools for Monitoring Athletes’ Health Status

Acute or intense exercise is sometimes related to infections of the urinary tract. It can also lead to incorrect hydration as well as incorrect glomerular filtration due to the presence of high-molecular-weight proteins that cause damage to the kidneys. In this context, our study lays the foundations for the use of a urine test in a team of twelve male basketball players as a means of monitoring numerous biochemical parameters, including pH, specific weight, color, appearance, presence of bacterial cells, presence of squamous cells, leukocytes, erythrocytes, proteins, glucose, ketones, bilirubin, hemoglobin, nitrite, and leukocyte esterase, to prevent and/or treat the onset of pathologies, prescribe personalized treatments for each athlete, and monitor the athletes&rsquo; health status

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus: Risk for General Infection and Endocarditis Among Athletes

The first studies on Staphylococcus aureus (SA) infections in athletes were conducted in the 1980s, and examined athletes that perform in close physical contact, with particular attention to damaged or infected skin. Recent studies have used molecular epidemiology to shed light on the transmission of SA in professional athletes. These studies have shown that contact between athletes is prolonged and constant, and that these factors influence the appearance of infections caused by SA. These results support the need to use sanitary measures designed to prevent the appearance of SA infections. The factors triggering the establishment of SA within professional sports groups are the nasal colonization of SA, contact between athletes and sweating. Hence, there is a need to use the most modern molecular typing methods to evaluate the appearance of cutaneous SA disease. This review aims to summarize both the current SA infections known in athletes and the diagnostic methods employed for recognition, pointing to possible preventive strategies and the factors that can act as a springboard for the appearance of SA and subsequent transmission between athletes

Ultra-deep sequencing (uds) allows more sensitive detection of the D816V and other kit gene mutations in systemic mastocytosis

none21no56th ASH Annual Meeting 9-6 December 2014, San Francisco (CA)nonenoneCaterina De Benedittis, Simona Soverini, Cristina Papayannidis, Michela Rondoni, Sabrina Colarossi, Francesca Dal Pero, Luca Zazzeroni, Roberta Zanotti, Giovanna De Matteis, Serena Merante, Chiara Elena, Federica Irene Grifoni, Massimiliano Bonifacio, Omar Perbellini, Giorgina Specchia, Livio Pagano, Domenica Gangemi, Patrizia Bonadonna, Lisa Pieri, Michele Cavo, Giovanni MartinelliCaterina De Benedittis, Simona Soverini, Cristina Papayannidis, Michela Rondoni, Sabrina Colarossi, Francesca Dal Pero, Luca Zazzeroni, Roberta Zanotti, Giovanna De Matteis, Serena Merante, Chiara Elena, Federica Irene Grifoni, Massimiliano Bonifacio, Omar Perbellini, Giorgina Specchia, Livio Pagano, Domenica Gangemi, Patrizia Bonadonna, Lisa Pieri, Michele Cavo, Giovanni Martinell

Ultra-Deep Sequencing (UDS) Allows More Sensitive Detection of the D816V and Other Kit Gene Mutations in Systemic Mastocytosis

Objectives and background: According to the World Health Organization (WHO) classification, the diagnosis of Systemic Mastocytosis (SM) relies on bone marrow (BM) examination and is based on a major and four minor criteria. The somatic ‘autoactivating’ point mutation D816V in the KIT receptor gene is one of the minor criteria, founded in the great majority of patients (90%) and it plays a central role in the pathogenesis of the disease. Indolent Systemic Mastocytosis (ISM) is the most common variant of SM, characterized by a very low MC burden and associated with very different clinical pictures. A highly sensitive diagnostic methods for D816V detection are required to assure an appropriate diagnosis and to reduce false-negative results. The recent development of “ultra-deep amplicon sequencing” (UDS) technologies has opened the way to a more accurate characterization of molecular aberrations with higher sensitivity of screening for known and unknown mutations. Our aims were: i) to set-up and optimize a UDS-based mutation screening strategy of the KIT gene on the Roche GS Junior Instrument; ii) to test the sensitivity of our UDS assay to detect the D816V mutation; iii) to investigate the presence of additional KIT mutations in SM. Methods:We decided to take advantage of a next generation sequencing approach to perform an UDS KIT gene mutation analysis on 20 bone marrow (BM) samples from patients whit ISM that were negative for the D816V mutation by Sanger Sequencing which has a sensitivity of 20%. Fusion primers were designed to generate ten partially overlapping amplicon covering the whole KIT transcript (exons 1-21) by RT-PCR. To determine the lower detection limit of our UDS-assay, serial dilutions of the HMC-1 cell line (harboring the D816V mutation) into an unmutated K562 cell line in ratios such as to simulate the following mutation loads were sequenced: 50%, 37.5%, 25%, 12.5%, 5%; 2.5%, 1.25%, 0.5%, 0.25%. Results and significance: UDS of cell line dilutions showed a high accuracy of D816V mutation detection and linearity of mutation calling over the entire range down to 0.25%. The UDS technology allowed to detected the D816V mutation, below the lower detection limit of Sanger Sequencing, with an abundance from 0.5% to 11%, in 12/20 ISM patients. Two additional sequence variations were detected in a large proportion of patients. These two variations included a 3bp in-frame deletion in exon 15 (GenBank X06182.1: c.2164_2166delAGC; p.S715del) found in 11/20 patients and a 12bp in frame-deletion in exon 9 in all patients, whit an abundance ranging from 83% to 97% (GenBank X06182.1: c.1550_1561delGTAACAACAAAG; p.G510_K513del). Previously published studies indicate that the KIT Gly-Asn-Asn-Lys510-513+/- alternatively spliced located immediately downstream to the extracellular KIT domain and KIT Ser715+/-, an interkinase KIT domain, are expressed in normal human hematopoietic cell, leukemic cell lines, acute myeloid leukemia blast and GISTs and represent rather a splice variant of KIT transcript. Interestingly our results showed the presence of the transmembrane domain M541L (GenBank X06182.1: c.1642A>C; p.Met541Leu) KIT-activating mutation in exon 10, with an abundance of 50%, in addition to D816V, in 2/20 ISM. This mutation is known to retain sensitivity to imatinib mesylate. Conclusions:Our preliminary results suggest that our-UDS based KIT gene mutation screening assay might be a reliable and sensitive alternative to conventional sequencing methods for the detection of the D816V. We are now planning to investigate whether the greater sensitivity of UDS allows to detect the D816V mutation in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with a suspected clonal mast cell disorder. These results could represent a starting point to plan other extensive studies to better understand the exact role of KIT receptor alterations in SM