Acute Effects of Caffeinated Chewing Gum on Volleyball Performance in High-Performance Female Players.

To date, no investigation has studied the effect of acute intake of caffeinated chewing gum on volleyball performance. Therefore, the aim of this investigation was to establish the impact of caffeinated chewing gum ingestion on physical performance in female volleyball players. Twelve high-performance volleyball female athletes participated in a randomized, crossover, placebo-controlled, and double-blind experiment.

Diagnostic accuracy of red blood cell distribution width in predicting in-hospital mortality in patients undergoing high-risk gastrointestinal surgery.

Background: The red blood cell distribution width index (RDW) is one of several parameters routinely analysed in peripheral blood counts. The aim of the study was to assess the usefulness of RDW in the prediction of in-hospital mortality in patients undergoing high-risk gastroenterological surgery.

Methods: Prospective observation covered 229 patients who underwent surgery, for whom the risk of cardiovascular complications was high due to the type of procedure.

Post-Effort Changes in Activity of Traditional Diagnostic Enzymatic Markers in Football Players' Blood.

Background: Long-term and intensive physical effort causes metabolic and biochemical adaptations for both athletic and non-athletic objectives. Knowing the importance of aerobic training in football players, the aim of this study was to evaluate changes in the activity of: creatinine kinase (CK), creatine kinase MB (CKMB), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), α-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBDH), cholinesterase (ChE) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) in response to a semi-long distance outdoor run under aerobic conditions among both female and male football players.

Methods: Sixteen participants aged 21.

The -9/+9 polymorphism of the bradykinin receptor Beta 2 gene and athlete status: a study involving two European cohorts.

Previous studies concerning the relevance of BDKRB2 gene polymorphisms revealed that the absence (-9 allele) of a nine-base-pair sequence in exon 1 of the BDKRB2 gene is correlated with higher skeletal muscle metabolic efficiency, glucose uptake during exercise, and endurance athletic performance. The aim of the study was to investigate the association between the BDKRB2 -9/+9 polymorphism and elite athletic status in two cohorts of eastern European athletes. We examined the genotype distribution of the BDKRB2 9/+9 polymorphic site in a group of Polish athletes and confirmed the results obtained in a replication study of Russian athletes.

Could biochemical liver profile help to assess metabolic response to aerobic effort in athletes?

Monitoring and optimizing the effectiveness of training course require wide analyses of athletes' blood parameter changes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of biochemical liver profile to assess the metabolic response to semi-long-distance outdoor run in football players. Sixteen football players run outdoor for 60 minutes to achieve aerobic metabolism.

Association of the MTHFR 1298A>C (rs1801131) polymorphism with speed and strength sports in Russian and Polish athletes.

It has been suggested that DNA hypomethylation because of poorer effectiveness of the 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) enzyme induces muscular growth. We hypothesised that the common, functional 1298A>C polymorphism in the MTHFR gene is associated with athletic status. To test this hypothesis, we investigated the distribution of the 1298A>C variant in Polish (n = 302) and Russian (n = 842) athletes divided into four groups: endurance, strength-endurance, sprint-strength and strength-endurance, as well as in 1540 control participants.