44 research outputs found

    Athlome Project Consortium: a concerted effort to discover genomic and other "omic" markers of athletic performance.

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    Despite numerous attempts to discover genetic variants associated with elite athletic performance, injury predisposition, and elite/world-class athletic status, there has been limited progress to date. Past reliance on candidate gene studies predominantly focusing on genotyping a limited number of single nucleotide polymorphisms or the insertion/deletion variants in small, often heterogeneous cohorts (i.e., made up of athletes of quite different sport specialties) have not generated the kind of results that could offer solid opportunities to bridge the gap between basic research in exercise sciences and deliverables in biomedicine. A retrospective view of genetic association studies with complex disease traits indicates that transition to hypothesis-free genome-wide approaches will be more fruitful. In studies of complex disease, it is well recognized that the magnitude of genetic association is often smaller than initially anticipated, and, as such, large sample sizes are required to identify the gene effects robustly. A symposium was held in Athens and on the Greek island of Santorini from 14-17 May 2015 to review the main findings in exercise genetics and genomics and to explore promising trends and possibilities. The symposium also offered a forum for the development of a position stand (the Santorini Declaration). Among the participants, many were involved in ongoing collaborative studies (e.g., ELITE, GAMES, Gene SMART, GENESIS, and POWERGENE). A consensus emerged among participants that it would be advantageous to bring together all current studies and those recently launched into one new large collaborative initiative, which was subsequently named the Athlome Project Consortium

    Efficacy of tibolone and raloxifene for the maintenance of skeletal muscle strength, bone mineral density, balance, body composition, cognitive function, mood/depression, anxiety and quality of life/well-being in late postmenopausal women ≥ 70 years: Study design of a randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, placebo-controlled, single-center trial

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    <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Postmenopausal women are prone to develop functional disabilities as a result of reduction in muscle strength and muscle mass caused by diminished levels of female sex hormones. While hormone replacement therapy may counteract these changes, conventional hormone replacement therapy is associated with potential harmful effects, such as an increased risk of breast cancer, and its prescription is not recommended. For this reason newer alternative drugs, such as tibolone, a synthetic steroid with estrogenic, progestogenic and androgenic activity, and raloxifene, a selective estrogen receptor modulator, may be more appropriate. This trial investigates the effect of tibolone and raloxifene on muscle strength.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We recruited 318 elderly women in our single-center randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, placebo-controlled trial. Participants were randomized to tibolone 1.25 mg (Org OD 14, Organon NV, the Netherlands) plus placebo, raloxifene 60 mg (Evista<sup>®</sup>, Eli Lilly, United States) plus placebo or two placebo tablets daily for 24 months.</p> <p>The primary aim is to determine if there is a difference between tibolone and placebo or if there is a difference between raloxifene and placebo. Primary endpoints are muscle strength and bone mineral density. The secondary endpoints are postural balance, body composition, cognitive function, anxiety, mood and quality of life. The secondary aim is to determine if there is a difference between tibolone and raloxifene.</p> <p>The measure of effect is the change from the baseline visit to the visits after 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, and 24 months. A follow-up measurement is planned at 30 months to determine whether any effects are sustained after cessation of the study. By December 2007 the blind will be broken and the data analyzed.</p> <p>Trial registration number</p> <p>NTR: 1232</p
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