Field Test Performance of Junior Competitive Surf Athletes following a Core Strength Training Program

International Journal of Exercise Science 11(6): 696-707, 2018. Lower body and core muscular strength are essential for optimal performance in many sports and competitive surfers have similar strength demands when maneuvering a surfboard to achieve competition success. Presently, the use of unstable surfaces is excessively utilized by surf coaches and trainers and to date, research does not support this as an effective training method for long-term improvements. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an 8-week Core Strength Training Program (CSTP) on a battery of field tests specific to assessing core musculature and lower body strength for junior competitive surf athletes. Nineteen American junior competitive surf athletes (age:15.7±1.01yrs, height:1.77±0.007m, mass:64.67±9.08kg) completed pre- and post-tests with a transitional pre-season to in-season 8-week CSTP intervention. The battery of tests included: rotational power (RP), time to peak acceleration (TP), maximal acceleration (Ma), maximal countermovement jump (CMJ), estimated peak power (PP), core strength (CS), core endurance (CE), and rotational flexibility (RF). Means, standard deviations, RMANOVA with a significance level of p \u3c 0.05, and effect sizes were computed. Results demonstrated significant improvements in L.RP, TP, CMJ, PP, CS, and RF. Based on the results, the CSTP is an effective training program for surf coaches and strength and conditioning professionals to improve strength in the core musculature and lower body. In addition, we conclude implementation of the CSTP enhances athletic performance measurements which will likely increase competition success

Contractile force is enhanced in Aortas from pendrin null mice due to stimulation of angiotensin II-dependent signaling.

Pendrin is a Cl-/HCO3- exchanger expressed in the apical regions of renal intercalated cells. Following pendrin gene ablation, blood pressure falls, in part, from reduced renal NaCl absorption. We asked if pendrin is expressed in vascular tissue and if the lower blood pressure observed in pendrin null mice is accompanied by reduced vascular reactivity. Thus, the contractile responses to KCl and phenylephrine (PE) were examined in isometrically mounted thoracic aortas from wild-type and pendrin null mice. Although pendrin expression was not detected in the aorta, pendrin gene ablation changed contractile protein abundance and increased the maximal contractile response to PE when normalized to cross sectional area (CSA). However, the contractile sensitivity to this agent was unchanged. The increase in contractile force/cross sectional area observed in pendrin null mice was due to reduced cross sectional area of the aorta and not from increased contractile force per vessel. The pendrin-dependent increase in maximal contractile response was endothelium- and nitric oxide-independent and did not occur from changes in Ca2+ sensitivity or chronic changes in catecholamine production. However, application of 100 nM angiotensin II increased force/CSA more in aortas from pendrin null than from wild type mice. Moreover, angiotensin type 1 receptor inhibitor (candesartan) treatment in vivo eliminated the pendrin-dependent changes contractile protein abundance and changes in the contractile force/cross sectional area in response to PE. In conclusion, pendrin gene ablation increases aorta contractile force per cross sectional area in response to angiotensin II and PE due to stimulation of angiotensin type 1 receptor-dependent signaling. The angiotensin type 1 receptor-dependent increase in vascular reactivity may mitigate the fall in blood pressure observed with pendrin gene ablation

Genome-Wide Association Study Identifies Loci for Liver Enzyme Concentrations in Mexican Americans: The GUARDIAN Consortium.

ObjectivePopulations of Mexican American ancestry are at an increased risk for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The objective of this study was to determine whether loci in known and novel genes were associated with variation in aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (n = 3,644), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (n = 3,595), and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) (n = 1,577) levels by conducting the first genome-wide association study (GWAS) of liver enzymes, which commonly measure liver function, in individuals of Mexican American ancestry.MethodsLevels of AST, ALT, and GGT were determined by enzymatic colorimetric assays. A multi-cohort GWAS of individuals of Mexican American ancestry was performed. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) were tested for association with liver outcomes by multivariable linear regression using an additive genetic model. Association analyses were conducted separately in each cohort, followed by a nonparametric meta-analysis.ResultsIn the PNPLA3 gene, rs4823173 (P = 3.44 × 10-10 ), rs2896019 (P = 7.29 × 10-9 ), and rs2281135 (P = 8.73 × 10-9 ) were significantly associated with AST levels. Although not genome-wide significant, these same SNPs were the top hits for ALT (P = 7.12 × 10-8 , P = 1.98 × 10-7 , and P = 1.81 × 10-7 , respectively). The strong correlation (r2  = 1.0) for these SNPs indicated a single hit in the PNPLA3 gene. No genome-wide significant associations were found for GGT.ConclusionsPNPLA3, a locus previously identified with ALT, AST, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in European and Japanese GWAS, is also associated with liver enzymes in populations of Mexican American ancestry

The Grizzly, October 4, 1985

Patterns for the Future Begin the Campaign • Rendell Enforces the Death Penalty • Ursinus: A Good Buy • Letters: Alpha Sigma Nu\u27s Pride Comes Through; WVOU Prints a Schedule • Editorial: How About a Little Help From Some Friends? • Homecoming 1957: Not so Different From Now • Alumni Search for Success: Holly Hayer • There was a Resume Workshop Seniors • Voices to be Performed at Ritter • Field Hockey Team: Leaving Teams in the Dust • Grizzlies Overcome a Ten Year Nemesis! • Cross Country Teams Survive Gloria • Homecoming Events Announced • Campus Security Noteshttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1146/thumbnail.jp

Symptom Clusters in Acute Myocardial Infarction: A Secondary Data Analysis

Background: Early recognition of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) symptoms and reduced time to treatment may reduce morbidity and mortality. People having AMI experience a constellation of symptoms, but the common constellations or clusters of symptoms have yet to be identified. Objectives: To identify clusters of symptoms that represent AMI. Methods: This was a secondary data analysis of nine descriptive, cross-sectional studies that included data from 1,073 people having AMI in the United States and England. Data were analyzed using latent class cluster analysis, an atheoretical method that uses only information contained in the data. Results: Five distinct clusters of symptoms were identified. Age, race, and sex were statistically significant in predicting cluster membership. None of the symptom clusters described in this analysis included all of the symptoms that are considered typical. In one cluster, subjects had only a moderate to low probability of experiencing any of the symptoms analyzed. Discussion: Symptoms of AMI occur in clusters, and these clusters vary among persons. None of the clusters identified in this study included all of the symptoms that are included typically as symptoms of AMI (chest discomfort, diaphoresis, shortness of breath, nausea, and lightheadedness). These AMI symptom clusters must be communicated clearly to the public in a way that will assist them in assessing their symptoms more efficiently and will guide their treatment-seeking behavior. Symptom clusters for AMI must also be communicated to the professional community in a way that will facilitate assessment and rapid intervention for AMI

The effects of footshock stress on regional brain dopamine metabolism and pituitary [beta]-endorphin release in rats previously sensitized to amphetamine

The repeated intermittent administration of amphetamine (AMP) produces an enduring enhancement in the response of dopamine (DA) systems in the brain to a subsequent "challenge" with amphetamine. However, former amphetamine addicts are not only hypersensitive to amphetamine, but also to "physical or psychologtical stress". This suggests that sensitization to amphetamine may change the response of DA neurons in brain to subsequent stress. To explore this idea, the effects of footshock stress on regional metabolism of DA in brain, and on the concentrations of plasma [beta]-endorphin and N-acetylated [beta]-endorphin, were studied in rats previously exposed to amphetamine or saline. It was found that: (I) Prior treatment with amphetamine produced enduring (at least 7 days) changes in the dopaminergic response to footshock in the medial frontal cortex, hypothalamus, dorsolateral striatum and nucleus accumbens. Generally, rats pretreated with amphetamine showed a greater initial reduction in concentrations of DA in response to footshock, and a greater elevation in concentrations of metabolites of DA and/or metabolite/transmitter ratios, compared to nonhandled control rats. (2) In some regions of the brain repeated injections of saline produced changes in the response to subsequent footshock that were comparable to those produced by amphetamine. (3) Prior treatment with amphetamine enhanced theelease of [beta]-endorphin and N-acetylated [beta]-endorphin from the pituitary elicited by footshock stress. It is concluded that repeated intermittent treatment with amphetamine or stress (injections of saline) produce enduring changes in the response of DA neurons and the pituitary to subsequent stress. These changes may be responsible for the hypersensitivity to stress reported in former amphetamine addicts, and in rats previously sensitized to amphetamine.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/26668/1/0000212.pd

Toward an integrative understanding of social behavior: new models and new opportunities.

Social interactions among conspecifics are a fundamental and adaptively significant component of the biology of numerous species. Such interactions give rise to group living as well as many of the complex forms of cooperation and conflict that occur within animal groups. Although previous conceptual models have focused on the ecological causes and fitness consequences of variation in social interactions, recent developments in endocrinology, neuroscience, and molecular genetics offer exciting opportunities to develop more integrated research programs that will facilitate new insights into the physiological causes and consequences of social variation. Here, we propose an integrative framework of social behavior that emphasizes relationships between ultimate-level function and proximate-level mechanism, thereby providing a foundation for exploring the full diversity of factors that underlie variation in social interactions, and ultimately sociality. In addition to identifying new model systems for the study of human psychopathologies, this framework provides a mechanistic basis for predicting how social behavior will change in response to environmental variation. We argue that the study of non-model organisms is essential for implementing this integrative model of social behavior because such species can be studied simultaneously in the lab and field, thereby allowing integration of rigorously controlled experimental manipulations with detailed observations of the ecological contexts in which interactions among conspecifics occur

The Grizzly, November 22, 1985

From Damp to Bone Dry? • UCFL Takes to the Air: Or Visa Versa • It\u27s all Greek to me • The Descent on the Skunks of Ursinus • Editorial: Yale Conference a Learning Experience • Letter: Munchies Mandate • Who\u27s Who Honors Ursinus • How to Deal with Terrorists? • Two Truman Scholars • In Search of Success: Marivi Relova Brings Good Things to GE • Communication a Must • Bears Bounce Dickinson • Booters Find Cold Times in New Hampshire • Soccer Seniors Will be Missed • Coach B. is Back • Lady Bears Hope to Improve Behind Letuakas • Season Tips Off Tonight • Gymnasts Spring into Season • Alercio Faces J Board • Myrin Stacks Up • Fields Should be Ready in Spring • Immersion as Opposed to Voyeurism in Summer Study in France • Smokeless Tobacco Still Burns • Women\u27s Studies Added to Goal No. 9 • Eating Healthy at College Essential • Open Dialogs: Middle Class on Welfare?; Mercy Killing as a Solution; Birth Defects Popular With Geneticists • Ursinus College: The Marriage Factoryhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1153/thumbnail.jp

The Grizzly, October 25, 1985

Registration has Come Upon Us • RA Supervision Allows Reimert\u27s Co-ed Transition • Siblings Sharing the Same Experience • One Hundred Years of Tradition Passes With Fretz • Prof. Profile: Armstrong Balances his own Studies With Students\u27 Studies • In Search of Success: Lehman Leans Towards Stockbroker • Letters: What is That Eye Material?; Walter Still Upset; Music Comes to UC • Scram Leaves its Name in Reimert History • Concert Review: Bon Jovi and Ratt Draw a Crowd of Leather • Wanted: Attempted Murder • Bears Fall to Fifth Ranked Gettysburg • Annual Snell Game Ends in a Tie • Booters Win a Big One Over Haverford Squad • Mers Ready to Plunge Into Season • New Course at U.C.: Human Sexuality • Richter Named as Chairman • How to Handle the Effects of Harmful Stress • Roving Reporter: Do You Think Fraternities and Sororities are a Positive Aspect of Campus Life?https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1149/thumbnail.jp

The Grizzly, October 11, 1985

Student Assaulted on Main Street • Well on the Track Back to Wellness • Time can be an Enemy or Ally • Letters: USGA Wants a Discount; Classics Club Revived • I.F. Image • U.C. Player of the Week • Alumni Search for Success: Ron Marcy • Graduate School Could be Around the Corner • The Lantern is Waiting for You • Grizzlies are Performing Some Impressive Feats • Women\u27s Field Hockey Keeps a Tradition Flowing • Notes: Poole Appointed to Directors Board; An Array of Music; Dr. Yost Prints his Book; Campus Security • Lent Twins: One Step in Front of the Other • U.C. Runs Over Opposition • Roving Reporter: What do you Think About the Current Alcohol Policy on Campus?https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1147/thumbnail.jp