CARNITINE SUPPLEMENTATION EFFECTS ON NONENZYMATIC ANTIOXIDANTS IN YOUNG RATS SUBMITTED TO EXHAUSTIVE EXERCISE STRESS

Bucioli, SA, de Abreu, LC, Valenti, VE, and Vannucchi, H. Carnitine supplementation effects on nonenzymatic antioxidants in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress. J Strength Cond Res 26(6): 1695-1700, 2012-Previous studies have demonstrated that exercise stress increases oxidative stress in rats. However, antioxidant supplement therapy effects on reactive oxygen substances are conflicting. We evaluated the effects of carnitine on renal nonenzymatic antioxidants in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress. Wistar rats were divided into 3 groups: (a) control group (not submitted to exercise stress), (b) exercise stress group, and (c) exercise stress and carnitine group. The rats from group 3 were treated with gavage administration of 1 ml of carnitine (5 mg.kg(-1)) for 7 consecutive days. The animals from groups 2 and 3 were submitted to a bout of swimming exhaustive exercise stress. Kidney samples were analyzed for reactive substances to thiobarbituric acid by malondialdehyde (MDA), reduced glutathione (GSH), and vitamin-E levels. Carnitine treatment attenuated MDA increase caused by exercise stress (1:0.16 +/- 0.02 vs. 2:0.34 +/- 0.07 vs. 3:0.1 +/- 0.01 mmmol per milligram of protein; p < 0.0001). It also increased the renal levels of GSH (1:23 +/- 4 vs. 2:23 +/- 2 vs. 3:58 +/- 9 mu mol per gram of protein; p, 0.0001); however, it did not change renal vitamin E (1:24 +/- 5 vs. 2:27 +/- 1 vs. 3:28 +/- 5 mu M per gram of tissue; p < 0.001). In conclusion, carnitine improved oxidative stress and partially improved the nonenzymatic antioxidant activity in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress.

Vitamin E and Carnitine suplementation effects on blood glucose levels in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress

Background: In this study we evaluated the effects of carnitine and vitamin E supplementation on blood glucose levels in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress. Methods: Wistar rats were divided into four groups: 1) control group; 2) exercise stress group; 3) exercise stress + Vitamin E and; 4) exercise stress + carnitine group. Rats from the group 3 and 4 were treated with gavage administration of 1 mL of Vitamin E (5mg/kg) and carnitine (5mg/kg) for seven consecutive days. Animals from groups 2, 3 and 4 were submitted to a bout of swimming exhaustive exercise stress. We analyzed blood glucose levels after exercise stress. Results: Blood glucose levels after exercise stress were significantly increased in the groups treated with Vitamine E and carnitine (control group: 98.7 +/- 9mg/dL vs. stress group: 84.2 +/- 11 mg/dL vs. carnitine + stress group: 147.4 +/- 15 mg/dL vs. vintamin E + stress: 158.3 +/- 7 mg/dL; p<0.0001). Conclusion: Vitamin E and carnitine supplementation attenuate the hypoglycemia induced by exercise in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress.

Evaluation of different selective media for enumeration of probiotic micro-organisms in combination with yogurt starter cultures in fermented milk

The aim of this study was to assess selective plating methodologies for the enumeration and identification of Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis in fermented milks. Seven agar media (MRS with added sorbitol, clindamycin or vancomycin, acidified MRS, RCA with added aniline blue and dicloxacilin, M17 and ST) were evaluated. The results showed that RCA dicloxacilin agar was suitable for the selective enumeration of B. animalis ssp. lactis in fermented milk. Either MRS (acidified) or M17 agar could be used for enumeration of L. delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus and S. thermophilus, respectively. MRS media containing antibiotics were effective for the enumeration of the probiotic organisms (L. rhamnosus and L. acidophilus) inoculated in fermented milks.

Simcluster: clustering enumeration gene expression data on the simplex space

Abstract Background Transcript enumeration methods such as SAGE, MPSS, and sequencing-by-synthesis EST "digital northern", are important high-throughput techniques for digital gene expression measurement. As other counting or voting processes, these measurements constitute compositional data exhibiting properties particular to the simplex space where the summation of the components is constrained. These properties are not present on regular Euclidean spaces, on which hybridization-based microarray data is often modeled. Therefore, pattern recognition methods commonly used for microarray data analysis may be non-informative for the data generated by transcript enumeration techniques since they ignore certain fundamental properties of this space. Results Here we present a software tool, Simcluster, designed to perform clustering analysis for data on the simplex space. We present Simcluster as a stand-alone command-line C package and as a user-friendly on-line tool. Both versions are available at: http://xerad.systemsbiology.net/simcluster. Conclusion Simcluster is designed in accordance with a well-established mathematical framework for compositional data analysis, which provides principled procedures for dealing with the simplex space, and is thus applicable in a number of contexts, including enumeration-based gene expression data.

Effects of vitamin E supplementation on renal non-enzymatic antioxidants in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress

Abstract Background Exercise stress was shown to increase oxidative stress in rats. It lacks reports of increased protection afforded by dietary antioxidant supplements against ROS production during exercise stress. We evaluated the effects of vitamin E supplementation on renal non-enzymatic antioxidants in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress. Methods Wistar rats were divided into three groups: 1) control group; 2) exercise stress group and; 3) exercise stress + Vitamin E group. Rats from the group 3 were treated with gavage administration of 1 mL of Vitamin E (5 mg/kg) for seven consecutive days. Animals from groups 2 and 3 were submitted to a bout of swimming exhaustive exercise stress. Kidney samples were analyzed for Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances to (TBARS) by malondialdehyde (MDA), reduced glutathione (GSH) and vitamin-E levels. Results The group treated with vitamin E and submitted to exercise stress presented the lowest levels of renal MDA (1: 0.16+0.02 mmmol/mgprot vs. 2: 0.34+0.07 mmmol/mgprot vs. 3: 0.1+0.01 mmmol/mgprot; p < 0.0001), the highest levels of renal GSH (1: 23+4 μmol/gprot vs. 2: 23+2 μmol/gprot vs. 3: 58+9 μmol/gprot; p < 0.0001) and the highest levels of renal vitamin E (1: 24+6 μM/gtissue vs. 2: 28+2 μM/gtissue vs. 3: 43+4 μM/gtissue; p < 0.001). Conclusion Vitamin E supplementation improved non-enzymatic antioxidant activity in young rats submitted to exhaustive exercise stress.

Universality in bibliometrics

Many discussions have enlarged the literature in Bibliometrics since the Hirsch proposal, the so called h-index. Ranking papers according to their citations, this index quantifies a researcher only by its greatest possible number of papers that are cited at least h times. A closed formula for h-index distribution that can be applied for distinct databases is not yet known. In fact, to obtain such distribution, the knowledge of citation distribution of the authors and its specificities are required. Instead of dealing with researchers randomly chosen, here we address different groups based on distinct databases. The first group is composed of physicists and biologists, with data extracted from Institute of Scientific Information (IS!). The second group is composed of computer scientists, in which data were extracted from Google-Scholar system. In this paper, we obtain a general formula for the h-index probability density function (pdf) for groups of authors by using generalized exponentials in the context of escort probability. Our analysis includes the use of several statistical methods to estimate the necessary parameters. Also an exhaustive comparison among the possible candidate distributions are used to describe the way the citations are distributed among authors. The h-index pdf should be used to classify groups of researchers from a quantitative point of view, which is meaningfully interesting to eliminate obscure qualitative methods. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Bioenergetics and neuromuscular determinants of the time to exhaustion at velocity corresponding to (V) over dotO(2)max in recreational long-distance runners

Bertuzzi, R, Bueno, S, Pasqua, LA, Acquesta, FM, Batista, MB, Roschel, H, Kiss, MAPDM, Serrao, JC, Tricoli, V, and Ugrinowitsch, C. Bioenergetics and neuromuscular determinants of the time to exhaustion at velocity corresponding to (V) over dotO(2)max in recreational long-distance runners. J Strength Cond Res 26(8): 2096-2102, 2012-The purpose of this study was to investigate the main bioenergetics and neuromuscular determinants of the time to exhaustion (T-lim) at the velocity corresponding to maximal oxygen uptake in recreational long-distance runners. Twenty runners performed the following tests on 5 different days: (a) maximal incremental treadmill test, (b) 2 submaximal tests to determine running economy and vertical stiffness, (c) exhaustive test to measured the T-lim, (d) maximum dynamic strength test, and (e) muscle power production test. Aerobic and anaerobic energy contributions during the T-lim test were also estimated. The stepwise multiple regression method selected 3 independent variables to explain T-lim variance. Total energy production explained 84.1% of the shared variance (p = 0.001), whereas peak oxygen uptake ((V) over dotO(2)peak) measured during T-lim and lower limb muscle power ability accounted for the additional 10% of the shared variance (p = 0.014). These data suggest that the total energy production, (V) over dotO(2)peak, and lower limb muscle power ability are the main physiological and neuromuscular determinants of T-lim in recreational long-distance runners.

Burnout syndrome and Brazilian civil aviation: a short essay on the focus on prevention

Introduction: At the same time that there are increased demands we have become more sedentary, increasing risk factors for new diseases. All this reflects on our quality of life with special emphasis upon a particular syndrome called Burnout. Aviation is no exception and packed into its processes each day more expeditious, promotes a perfect environment for the development and spread of the syndrome. Aim: To evaluate the quality of life, organizational climate, and the level of physical activity among employees of a Brazilian airline. Methods: A cross-sectional design was conducted with 8 subjects. Results: Total score on the WHOQOL quality of life questionnaire was 64.7 (SD 10.8), and the environmental field showed the lowest score. Nevertheless, the sedentary risk factor was performed in 25% of the sample. About the organizational climate, it can be seen that 6.12% of the sample was framed in "Professional Exhaustive", 29.60% in the condition of "Warning", and 64.37% in the condition of "Professional Efficiency". Conclusion: the study found a low quality of life, especially in the environmental category, sedentary people and a large proportion of employees in this Brazilian airline with negative scores on the Organizational Climate.

A new overtraining protocol for mice based on downhill running sessions

The purpose of the present study was to verify whether a downhill running protocol was able to induce non-functional overreaching in > 75% of mice. Mice were divided into control (C), trained (TR) and overtrained (OTR) groups. Bodyweight and food intake were recorded weekly. The incremental load test (ILT) and the exhaustive test (ET) were used to measure performance before and after aerobic training and overtraining protocols. Although the bodyweight of the OTR group was lower than that of the C group at the end of Week 7, the food intake of the OTR group was higher than that of the C and TR groups at the end of Week 8. Evaluation of results from the ILT and ET revealed significant intra- and inter-group differences: whereas the parameters measured by both tests increased significantly in the TR group, they were significantly decreased in the OTR group. In conclusion, this new overtraining protocol based on downhill running sessions induced non-functional overreaching in 100% of mice.

Scientific metaphors in the journalistic discourse

Scientific education and divulgation not only amplify people's vocabulary and repertory of scientific concepts but, at the same time, promote the diffusion of certain conceptual and cognitive metaphors. Here we describe this process and propose a classification in terms of visible, invisible, basic and derived metaphors. We focus our attention on physical metaphors applied to psychological and socio-economical phenomena, by studying two exemplar cases through an exhaustive exam of the online content of large Brazilian journalistic portals. Finally, we present implications and suggestions from Lakiff and Johnson's cognitive metaphor theory for the scientific education and divulgation process.

Effect of N-acetylcysteine on markers of skeletal muscle injury after fatiguing contractile activity

The effects of N-Acetylcysteine (NAC), an unspecific antioxidant, on fatiguing contractile activity-induced injury were investigated. Twenty-four male Wistar rats were randomly assigned to two groups. The placebo group (N=12) received one injection of phosphate buffer (PBS) 1 h prior to contractile activity induced by electrical stimulation. The NAC group (NAC; N=12) received electrical stimulation for the same time period and NAC (500 mg/kg, i.p.) dissolved in PBS 1 h prior to electrical stimulation. The contralateral hindlimb was used as a control, except in the analysis of plasma enzyme activities, when a control group (rats placebo group not electrically stimulated and not treated) was included. The following parameters were measured: tetanic force, muscle fatigue, plasma activities of creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), changes in muscle vascular permeability using Evans blue dye (EBD), muscle content of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity. Muscle fatigue was delayed and tetanic force was preserved in NAC-treated rats. NAC treatment decreased plasma CK and LDH activities. The content of muscle-derived ROS, TBARS, EBD and MPO activity in both gastrocnemius and soleus muscles were also decreased by NAC pre-treatment. Thus, NAC has a protective effect against injury induced by fatiguing contractile activity in skeletal muscle.

Symmetry insights for design of supercomputer network topologies: roots and weights lattices

We present a family of networks whose local interconnection topologies are generated by the root vectors of a semi-simple complex Lie algebra. Cartan classification theorem of those algebras ensures those families of interconnection topologies to be exhaustive. The global arrangement of the network is defined in terms of integer or half-integer weight lattices. The mesh or torus topologies that network millions of processing cores, such as those in the IBM BlueGene series, are the simplest member of that category. The symmetries of the root systems of an algebra, manifested by their Weyl group, lends great convenience for the design and analysis of hardware architecture, algorithms and programs.

Lipid Transfer to HDL is Higher in Marathon Runners than in Sedentary Subjects, but is Acutely Inhibited During the Run

Although exercise increases HDL-cholesterol, exercise-induced changes in HDL metabolism have been little explored. Lipid transfer to HDL is essential for HDL's role in reverse cholesterol transport. We investigated the effects of acute exhaustive exercise on lipid transfer to HDL. We compared plasma lipid, apolipoprotein and cytokine levels and in vitro transfer of four lipids from a radioactively labeled lipid donor nanoemulsion to HDL in sedentary individuals (n = 28) and in marathon runners (n = 14) at baseline, immediately after and 72 h after a marathon. While HDL-cholesterol concentrations and apo A1 levels were higher in marathon runners, LDL-cholesterol, apo B and triacylglycerol levels were similar in both groups. Transfers of non-esterified cholesterol [6.8 (5.7-7.2) vs. 5.2 (4.5-6), p = 0.001], phospholipids [21.7 (20.4-22.2) vs. 8.2 (7.7-8.9), p = 0.0001] and triacylglycerol [3.7 (3.1-4) vs. 1.3 (0.8-1.7), p = 0.0001] were higher in marathon runners, but esterified-cholesterol transfer was similar. Immediately after the marathon, LDL- and HDL-cholesterol concentrations and apo A1 levels were unchanged, but apo B and triacylglycerol levels increased. Lipid transfer of non-esterified cholesterol [6.8 (5.7-7.2) vs. 5.8 (4.9-6.6), p = 0.0001], phospholipids [21.7 (20.4-22.2) vs. 19.1 (18.6-19.3), p = 0.0001], esterified-cholesterol [3.2 (2.2-3.8) vs. 2.3 (2-2.9), p = 0.02] and triacylglycerol [3.7 (3.1-4) vs. 2.6 (2.1-2.8), p = 0.0001] to HDL were all reduced immediately after the marathon but returned to baseline 72 h later. Running a marathon increased IL-6 and TNF-alpha levels, but after 72 h these values returned to baseline. Lipid transfer, except esterified-cholesterol transfer, was higher in marathon runners than in sedentary individuals, but the marathon itself acutely inhibited lipid transfer. In light of these novel observations, further study is required to clarify how these metabolic changes can influence HDL composition and anti-atherogenic function.

Fibers from fruit by-products enhance probiotic viability and fatty acid profile and increase CLA content in yoghurts

This study evaluated the effect of the supplementation of total dietary fiber from apple, banana or passion fruit processing by-products on the post-acidification, total titratable acidity, bacteria counts and fatty acid profiles in skim milk yoghurts co-fermented by four different probiotics strains: Lactobacillus acidophilus L10 and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BL04, HN019 and B94. Apple and banana fibers increased the probiotic viability during shelf-life. All the fibers were able to increase the short chain and polyunsaturated fatty acid contents of yoghurts compared to their respective controls. A synergistic effect between the type of fiber and the probiotic strain on the conjugated linoleic acid content was observed, and the amount of alpha-linolenic acid was increased by banana fiber. The results of this study demonstrate, for the first time, that fruit fibers can improve the fatty acid profile of probiotic yoghurts and point out the suitability of using fibers from fruit processing the by-products to develop new high value-added fermented dairy products. (C) 2012 Elsevier By. All rights reserved.

Effect of inulin on the growth and metabolism of a probiotic strain of Lactobacillus rhamnosus in co-culture with Streptococcus thermophilus

Metabolic studies are very important to improve quality of functional dairy products. For this purpose, the behaviors of pure cultures of Streptococcus thermophilus (St) and Lactobacillus rhamnosus (Lr) as well a co-culture of them (St-Lr) were investigated during skim milk fermentation, and the inulin effect as prebiotic was assessed. Lr was able to metabolize 6 g/100 g more galactose than St and St-Lr. Final lactic acid production by Lr was higher (9.8 g/L) compared to St (9.1 g/L) and St-Lr (9.1 g/L). Acetic acid concentration varied from 0.8 g/L (St-Lr) to 1.5 g/L (Lr) and that of ethanol from only 0.2 g/L (St-Lr) to 0.4 g/L (Lr), which suggests the occurrence in Lr of a NADH oxidase activity and citrate co-metabolization via pyruvate, both dissipating a part of the reducing power. Diacetyl and acetoin accumulated at the highest levels (18.4 and 0.8 mg/L, respectively) with St-Lr, which suggests possible synergistic interactions between these microorganisms as well as the Lr capability of co-metabolizing citrate in the presence of lactose. Inulin stimulated both biomass growth and levels of all end-products, as the likely result of fructose release from its partial hydrolysis and subsequent metabolization as an additional carbon and energy source. Crown Copyright (C) 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.