Physical activity (PA) and exercise have been associated with a reduced risk of cancer, obesity, and diabetes. In the context of pregnancy, maintaining an active lifestyle has been shown to decrease gestational weight gain (GWG) and lower the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), hypertension, and macrosomia in offspring. The main pathways activated by PA include BCAAs, lipids, and bile acid metabolism, thereby improving insulin resistance in pregnant individuals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhysical activity (PA) during pregnancy provides both maternal and fetal health benefits. It has been theorized that myokines, peptides secreted by contracting skeletal muscle, may play an important mechanistic role in facilitating the health benefits obtained from prenatal exercise. The objective of this review was to synthesize the current literature on the relationship between maternal PA and myokine response.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThree theoretical models have been proposed to explain lifespan extension resulting from exposure to extreme conditions in microscopic animals: individuals become completely dormant and stop aging, continue to age or age but at a diminished rate. Here we show that the earliest life history stages, embryonic cell divisions, in the tardigrade species Hypsibius dujardini are retarded when eggs are reared at 0 °C. Compared to control specimens reared at 22 °C, juveniles that hatched from eggs exposed to 0 °C for 4 days and returned to 22 °C experienced a three-day lag, indicating that their biological age was less than their chronological age.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTardigrades are microscopic organisms renowned for their ability to survive extreme environmental conditions. Tardigrade extreme-tolerance research has centered on the ability to withstand desiccation, low and high temperatures, and high hydrostatic pressure and radiation levels. Tardigrade tolerance to hypergravity, however, has yet to be described.
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