Genetic Aspects Of Athletic Performance: The African Runners Phenomenon.

The current dominance of African runners in long-distance running is an intriguing phenomenon that highlights the close relationship between genetics and physical performance. Many factors in the interesting interaction between genotype and phenotype (eg, high cardiorespiratory fitness, higher hemoglobin concentration, good metabolic efficiency, muscle fiber composition, enzyme profile, diet, altitude training, and psychological aspects) have been proposed in the attempt to explain the extraordinary success of these runners. Increasing evidence shows that genetics may be a determining factor in physical and athletic performance. But, could this also be true for African long-distance runners? Based on this question, this brief review proposed the role of genetic factors (mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid, the Y chromosome, and the angiotensin-converting enzyme and the alpha-actinin-3 genes) in the amazing athletic performance observed in African runners, especially the Kenyans and Ethiopians, despite their environmental constraints.

[how The Gynecologist Can Guide Women With A Family History Of Cancer?].

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Evaluation of the performance of different plastics used to seal nylon cDNA arrays

cDNA arrays are a powerful tool for discovering gene expression patterns. Nylon arrays have the advantage that they can be re-used several times. A key issue in high throughput gene expression analysis is sensitivity. In the case of nylon arrays, signal detection can be affected by the plastic bags used to keep membranes humid. In this study, we evaluated the effect of five types of plastics on the radioactive transmittance, number of genes with a signal above the background, and data variability. A polyethylene plastic bag 69 μm thick had a strong shielding effect that blocked 68.7% of the radioactive signal. The shielding effect on transmittance decreased the number of detected genes and increased the data variability. Other plastics which were thinner gave better results. Although plastics made from polyvinylidene chloride, polyvinyl chloride (both 13 μm thick) and polyethylene (29 and 7 μm thick) showed different levels of transmittance, they all gave similarly good performances. Polyvinylidene chloride and polyethylene 29 mm thick were the plastics of choice because of their easy handling. For other types of plastics, it is advisable to run a simple check on their performance in order to obtain the maximum information from nylon cDNA arrays.

Análise do desempenho muscular do quadríceps e dos isquiotibiais em função da série temporal e da amplitude de movimento de atletas amadoras de futsal feminino = : Analysis of muscle performance of the quadriceps and hamstrings as a function of the times series and range of motion of amateurfemale futsal athletes

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física