Publications by authors named "Alvaro N Gurovich"

The vascular endothelium is the first line of defense to prevent cardiovascular disease. Its optimal functioning and health are maintained by the interaction of the proteins-endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), and endothelin 1 (ET1)-and the genes that encode them-, , and , respectively. Aerobic exercise improves endothelial function by allegedly increasing endothelial shear stress (ESS).

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  • Eccentric exercise (ECC) is gaining popularity as it enhances muscle performance with lower metabolic demands, but its effects on vascular responses are not fully understood.
  • This study analyzed the changes in blood flow patterns and endothelial shear stress (ESS) during ECC at low, moderate, and high intensities using a sample of eighteen healthy individuals.
  • Findings revealed that both antegrade and retrograde ESS increased significantly according to exercise intensity, indicating that ECC could help maintain endothelial health and improve blood flow dynamics.
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  • The study aimed to verify that blood lactate levels remain steady at moderate to high values throughout interval training (IT) sessions for trained athletes.
  • Forty-eight swimmers and track athletes completed various IT protocols, measuring performance times and blood lactate concentrations during passive recovery.
  • Results showed stable performance times and maintained blood lactate levels during the sessions, suggesting that this training method can effectively enhance endurance performance during competitions.
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The purpose of this investigation was to determine the elastic characteristics of the common carotid artery (CCA) during endurance exercise at 3 different intensities. : Twenty young healthy participants (10 males and 10 females) participated in this quasi-experimental cross-sectional study. Participants were tested in two sessions: (1) we took resting measurements of the elastic characteristics of the CCA and performed a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) on a cycle ergometer to determine submaximal exercise intensities, and we conducted (2) measurements of the elastic characteristics of the CCA while exercising in a cycle ergometer at 3 intensities based on blood lactate levels of low (<2 mmol/L), moderate (2-4 mmol/L), and high (>4 mmol/L).

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The COVID-19 pandemic affected many aspects of everyday life including school, fitness regimens, and social interactions. The purpose of this study is to understand how COVID-19 restrictions affect the cardiovascular and mental health of Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students as they progressed through the program. Data collection occurred in 16 DPT students (8F:8M, 24±3 years) over a total of 3 visits from 2020 to 2022, during high, moderate, and low COVID-19 restrictions.

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Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a non-invasive technique that measures tissue perfusion using red blood cells oxygen saturation and venous occlusion plethysmography (VOP) is the gold standard to assess microvascular blood flow and function. The purpose of this study was to determine if NIRS can surrogate the microvascular blood flow assessment after an ischemic challenge obtained via VOP. Twenty apparently healthy subjects (10 males and 10 females), aged 18 to 35 years, were recruited for this single session study.

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Endothelial dysfunction is the first pathophysiological step of atherosclerosis, which is responsible for 90% of strokes. Exercise programs aim to reduce the risk of developing stroke; however, the majority of the beneficial factors of exercise are still unknown. Endothelial shear stress (ESS) is associated with endothelial homeostasis.

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A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study where continuous therapeutic ultrasound (CUS; at 0.4 W/cm), pulsed therapeutic ultrasound (PUS; at 20% duty cycle, 0.08 W/cm), both at 1 MHz, and placebo (equipment on, no energy provided) were randomized and applied over the forearm of the non-dominant arm for 5 min in 10 young, healthy individuals.

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Premenopausal females have a lower cardiovascular risk than males. Sex differences on exercise-induced endothelial shear stress (ESS) and blood flow patterns may explain part of this risk reduction. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine the differences in brachial artery exercise-induced ESS and blood flow patterns between males and females.

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Even though there are physiological differences between males and females, heart rate (HR), ratings of perceived exertion (RPE), power output (PO), oxygen consumption (VO), and blood lactate (BL) levels have been used as measures of exercise intensity independently of sex. The purpose of this study was to determine differences between sexes in different exercise intensity models. Thirty (15 females) young, healthy individuals were scheduled for two testing visits 48-72 hours apart.

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  • The study aimed to assess how acute dietary nitrate supplementation affects resting metabolic rate (RMR) and oxidative stress levels in healthy young adults.
  • It involved 17 participants (10 males, 7 females) aged 19-25, undergoing a randomized, double-blind, cross-over design with various assessments before and after nitrate or placebo intake.
  • Results showed that while plasma nitrate/nitrite levels significantly increased after consuming dietary nitrate, there was no significant change in resting metabolism or oxidative stress biomarker levels.
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Introduction: Endothelial dysfunction is considered the first step in the development of atherosclerosis. Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) has been the most common assessment of endothelial function in research but it has failed in obtaining a widespread use in clinical settings due to a lack of standardization and a large inter-subject variability. Normalization of FMD to endothelial shear stress (ESS) has been proposed to solve its technical limitations.

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Purpose: Non-invasive central blood pressure assessed during exercise may provide better cardiovascular prognostic than measurements taken at rest. Radial tonometry is the only technique validated to perform this type of assessment; however, it relies on the experience of the tester. Cuff-based devices have been developed to avoid operator dependency, although these systems have yet to be validated during exercise.

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Background: Flow Mediated Dilation (FMD) has immense potential to become a clinical, non-invasive biomarker of endothelial function and nitric oxide bioavailability, which regulate vasomotor activity. Unfortunately, FMD analysis techniques could deviate significantly in different laboratories if a validation process is not involved. The purpose of this study was to provide validation to the assessment of FMD analysis in our laboratory and to standardize this process before reporting results of FMD.

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Background: Endothelial shear stress (ESS) is a physiological stimulus for vascular homeostasis, highly dependent on blood flow patterns. Exercise-induced ESS might be beneficial on vascular health. However, it is unclear what type of ESS aerobic exercise (AX) produces.

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Chronic diseases are a major health concern at the national and global level. According to the CDC, 86% of US health dollars go toward the treatment of chronic diseases. Many chronic diseases are manageable or preventable if individuals make appropriate lifestyle choices.

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Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) is recognized as a non-invasive endothelial function bioassay. However, FMD's relationship with endothelial cell oxidative stress in humans is yet to be determined. Here, we sought to determine if FMD was associated with endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and endothelial oxidative stress in humans.

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Background: Central hemodynamic and augmentation indices are independent predictors of cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality that can be estimated noninvasively by pulse wave analysis. The purpose of this study was to assess the reliability and validity of a newly engineered wristband tonometer for acquiring radial artery pressure waveforms.

Methods: Radial artery pulse pressure waveforms were evaluated with an established pencil-type and a novel wristband tonometer in 31 participants (aged 30.

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Exercise training ameliorates age-related impairments in endothelium-dependent vasodilation in skeletal muscle arterioles. Additionally, exercise training is associated with increased superoxide production. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of superoxide and superoxide-derived reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling in mediating endothelium-dependent vasodilation of soleus muscle resistance arterioles from young and old, sedentary and exercise-trained rats.

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Enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) is a FDA-approved treatment for patients with coronary artery disease and unstable angina. Although beneficial effects of EECP have been linked to central/cardiac adaptations, recent findings have shown peripheral/vascular effects. Here, we sought to determine EECP-induced blood flow patterns and their association with vascular function.

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Blood flow-induced endothelial shear stress (ESS) during aerobic (AX) and resistance (RX) exercise can regulate endothelial function. However, non-invasive in vivo ESS estimation is normally obtained only according to Poiseuille's laws for streamline flow, rather than using Womersley's approximation for pulsatile flows. Here, we sought to determine brachial and femoral artery blood flow patterns, based on ESS, flow direction, and flow turbulence, using both pulsatile and streamline flow approximations during low- and moderate-intensity AX and RX.

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Cardiovascular aging is associated with a decline in the function of the vascular endothelium. Considerable evidence indicates that age-induced impairment of endothelium-dependent vasodilation results from a reduction in the availability of nitric oxide (NO(•) ). NO(•) can be scavenged by reactive oxygen species (ROS), in particular by superoxide radical (O(2) (•-) ), and age-related increases in ROS have been demonstrated to contribute to reduced endothelium-dependent vasodilation in numerous large artery preparations.

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Background: Increased elastic conduit artery stiffness with aging is associated with early wave reflection and increased wasted left ventricular pressure energy (LVE(W)). The effects of aging on central hemodynamics during exercise have not been well characterized. This study sought to investigate changes in central hemodynamics during cycle exercise in young, middle-aged, and older men.

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