Urinary felinine excretion in intact male cats is increased by dietary cystine

Felinine is a branched-chain sulfur amino acid present in the urine of certain Felidae, including domestic cats. The objective of the present study was to determine if additional cystine and/or dietary N would increase felinine and N-acetylfelinine excretion by intact male cats fed a low-protein (LP) diet. Feeding five adult intact male cats an LP diet (18·8% of metabolisable energy (ME) as protein) v. a high-protein diet (38·6% of ME as protein) resulted in a trend (P¼0·08) for decreased urinary felinine and no change in N-acetylfelinine excretion. In a 23 d study, when the LP diet was supplemented with L-cystine at 9·3 g/kg DM, urinary felinine:creatinine ratio showed a linear two-fold (121 %) increase (P,0·01) from 0·24 (SEM 0·05) to 0·53 (SEM 0·13) after 10 d. Subsequent feeding of the LP diet resulted in a decrease in felinine excretion to base levels. Plasma gglutamylfelinylglycine concentrations were consistent with the excretion of felinine. Supplementation of the LP diet with L-cystine (9·3 g/kg DM), dispensable amino acids and arginine to a second group (n 5) also resulted in a significant (P,0·01) but smaller (þ72 %) increase in the daily felinine:creatinine ratio (0·25 (SEM 0·04) to 0·43 (SEM 0·05)). The degree of felinine N-acetylation within groups was unaffected by dietary addition and withdrawal of amino acids. The results indicate that felinine synthesis is regulated by cystine availability, and that arginine may be physiologically important in decreasing felinine biosynthesis in intact male cats

Comparison of Three Salivary Collection methods to Assess Physiological Markers.

fals

Testosterone increases urinary free felinine, N-acetylfelinine and methylbutanolglutathione excretion in cats (Felis catus)

Two days after castration, urinary free felinine plus N-acetylfelinine decreased 24% in male cats, but, by day 5, the concentration had not decreased to that routinely found in males that have been castrated for several months. In a second experiment, three groups of castrated adult male cats received different subcutaneous injections: control (carrier), testosterone, testosterone plus estradiol. A fourth group of intact adult female cats received a testosterone injection. Urine was collected and analysed for free felinine, N-acetylfelinine and 3-methylbutanolglutathione. Baseline blood testosterone and estradiol concentrations were low during the pre-period, but increased sharply after hormone injections. The concentration of all three urinary metabolites increased as a result of testosterone injections with estradiol not modulating the effect. The effect of testosterone was not gender dependent. The concentration of free felinine, N-acetylfelinine and 3-methylbutanolglutathione in the urine remained low in the placebo control group throughout the study. The relative molar contribution of free felinine to the total amount of felinine containing compounds increased due to testosterone treatment, while the contribution of 3-methylbutanolglutathione and N-acetylfelinine decreased. Testosterone increases free felinine, N-acetylfelinine and 3-methylbutanolglutathione excretion in castrated adult male and intact female cats, whereas estradiol does not modulate this effect

Effect of curcumin supplementation on exercise-induced muscle damage: a narrative review

Curcumin, a natural polyphenol extracted from turmeric, is a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent. In the past few decades, curcumin’s ability to impact chronic inflammatory conditions such as metabolic syndrome, arthritis, and cancer has been widely researched, along with growing interest in understanding its role in exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD). EIMD impacts individuals differently depending on the type (resistance exercise, high-intensity interval training, and running), intensity, and duration of the exercise. Exercise disrupts the muscles’ ultrastructure, raises inflammatory cytokine levels, and can cause swelling in the affected limb, a reduction in range of motion (ROM), and a reduction in muscular force-producing capacity. This review focuses on the metabolism, pharmacokinetics of various brands of curcumin supplements, and the effect of curcumin supplementation on EIMD regarding muscle soreness, activity of creatine kinase (CK), and production of inflammatory markers. Curcumin supplementation in the dose range of 90–5000 mg/day can decrease the subjective perception of muscle pain intensity, increase antioxidant capacity, and reduce CK activity, which reduces muscle damage when consumed close to exercise. Consumption of curcumin also improves muscle performance and has an anti-inflammatory effect, downregulating the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8. Curcumin may also improve oxidative capacity without hampering training adaptations in untrained and recreationally active individuals. The optimal curcumin dose to ameliorate EIMD is challenging to assess as its effect depends on the curcumin concentration in the supplement and its bioavailability.</p

Salivary diagnostic markers in males and females during rest and exercise

Abstract Background Saliva is a useful diagnostic tool for analysis in sports, exercise and nutrition research, as collection is easy and non-invasive and it contains a large number of analytes affected by a range of physiological and pathological stressors and conditions. This study examined key salivary electrolytes and stress and immune markers in males and females at rest and during exercise. Methods Unstimulated whole saliva from 20 healthy, recreationally active participants (8 males and 12 females) was analysed for flow rate, osmolality, sodium (Na+), potassium (K+), chloride (Cl−), secretory immunoglobulin A (SIgA), α-amylase activity and cortisol during both rest and moderate intensity (70% peak power) cycling exercise in a randomised crossover design. Each trial lasted 60 min and sampling was carried out at 15 and 45 min after the start of the trial. Saliva was collected using the gold-standard drool method; participants were required to provide at least 1 mL sample over 2 or 3-min period. Results Females showed a greater response to steady-state exercise stress than males, with significant increases in osmolality (P < 0.001), α-amylase activity (P = 0.001) and secretion rate (P = 0.023) and SIgA secretion rate (P = 0.023), with trends for an increase in K+ (P = 0.053) and decrease in Cl− (P = 0.067). There were no differences between rest and exercise for any salivary analytes in males. In addition, females showed a trend for higher levels of cortisol than males at both rest (P = 0.099) and exercise (P = 0.070), as well as a higher heart rate (P < 0.001) and greater ratings of perceived exertion (P < 0.001) during the exercise trial. The coordination of the two stress response pathways (α-amylase vs cortisol) was positive in males (r = 0.799; P = 0.017) yet negative in females (r = −0.475; P = 0.036). Conclusions Males and females show a markedly different response to steady-state exercise stress as measured in unstimulated whole saliva