European Journal of Applied Physiology最新文献

Purpose: We investigated whether an active protocol of ischemic preconditioning (IPC-A) would improve high-intensity intermittent exercise performance in youth team sport players.

Methods: Fifteen male amateur team sport players (15.5 ± 0.5 yrs) attended four different preconditioning sessions before the YoYo Intermittent Recovery Test level 1 (YYIR1) interspersed by seven days in a counterbalanced randomized cross-over design. IPC protocol consisted of three cycles of 5 min occlusion (220 mmHg) and 5 min reperfusion (0 mmHg) in both thighs. SHAM was similar to the IPC protocol, but 'occlusion' pressure was set up at 20 mmHg. Active protocols (IPC-A/ SHAM-A) were similar to the IPC/SHAM, but participants exercised (intermittent run) during the 'reperfusion' phases instead of resting. Six minutes after the protocol, the participants performed the YYIR1.

Results: The distance covered in the YYIR1 did not differ (p = 0.46) among the protocols: IPC (917 ± 204 m) vs. IPC-A (931 ± 211 m) vs. SHAM (968 ± 201 m) vs. SHAM-A (933 ± 204 m). Blood lactate concentration, and mean heart rate did not differ either (p > 0.05) among the protocols.

Conclusions: Active ischemic preconditioning involving exercise during reperfusion phase does not improve high-intensity intermittent exercise performance nor alter physiological or perceptual responses in youth team sport players.

Purpose: This randomized controlled clinical trial aimed to assess the short-term effects of inspiratory muscle fatigue and warm-up on respiratory muscle strength and diaphragm thickness in professional basketball players.

Methods: Thirty-eight professional basketball players randomly allocated into an Inspiratory Muscle Fatigue group (FG) or an Inspiratory Muscle Warm-up group (WG). Diaphragmatic ultrasound parameters (inspiratory thickness, thickening fraction) and maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP), measured at baseline, immediately post-intervention, and at 15 and 30 min post-intervention.

Results: Compared with baseline, the FG showed decreases of 7% in MIP, 11% in inspiratory diaphragm thickness, and 26% in thickening fraction (all p < 0.01; η² = 0.38-0.68). In contrast, the WG demonstrated increases of 5% in MIP, 9% in inspiratory thickness, and 17% in thickening fraction immediately and 15 min after the intervention (p < 0.01). All outcomes showed strong group × time interactions (η² ≥ 0.74). Improvements in the WG diminished by 30 min.

Conclusions: Inspiratory muscle fatigue induces short-term impairments in inspiratory muscle strength and diaphragm thickness lasting at least 30 min. In contrast, inspiratory muscle warm-up elicits transient improvements lasting up to 15 min.

Trial registration: This trial was prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT07046637) on July 10, 2025.

Purpose: Skill testing is a key component of sports science, yet research on golf performance assessment remains limited. This study aims to systematically review existing methods for evaluating golf performance and to visually present their design principles and indicator systems using a 3D bubble chart, ultimately proposing an optimized and standardized testing framework for golf skills.

Methods: Following the PRISMA guidelines, this study conducted a systematic search of Web of Science, PubMed, SPORTDiscus, Scopus, and Google Scholar, ultimately including 13 studies for analysis.

Results: Combined with 3D visualization indicate that existing research is overly concentrated on driving and putting, while iron and chipping tests are markedly underrepresented, limiting the comprehensive understanding of the four core golf skills. The number of shots and selection of measurement variables lack standardization. Although complex biomechanical and club-ball dynamics indicators can help explain performance mechanisms, overemphasis on these measures often overlooks the core objective of golf-getting the ball into the hole.

Conclusion: This study proposes a standardized modular testing framework centered on "target-hitting." Consists of four modules: ball-striking zone (e.g., grass, bunkers, slopes), target zone (e.g., fairway, green, and varying sizes), shot distance, and club selection. By adjusting the combination of modules, it can simulate complex scenarios and accommodate athletes of different skill levels, providing a scientific reference for research, training, and performance evaluation. This study also provides guidance on the test modules and test site setup.

Purpose: This study investigates the effects of different levels of acute normobaric hypoxia on cognitive function and cerebral oxygenation in healthy young adults.

Methods: Twenty-four participants aged 18-30 years were exposed to hypoxia with an inspired oxygen fraction (FiO₂) equivalent to 20.9%, 17.44%, 14.5% and 12.7%. They performed different cognitive tasks, including the Stroop test, Corsi blocks (forward and backward), the n-Back task (1-Back and 2-Back), and the Go/No-Go task. Cerebral oxygenation was measured using the near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) during each cognitive task.

Results: In this study, we did not observe any effect of hypoxia on cognitive performance. However, perceived difficulty increased with increasing hypoxia, especially for the Stroop task (p = 0.003, Kendall's W = 0.208) and Corsi (p = 0.018, Kendall's W = 0.152). NIRS results showed a progressive increase in deoxyhemoglobin (ΔHHb) and a progressive decrease in oxyhemoglobin (ΔO₂Hb) with increasing hypoxia for all cognitive tasks. There was no effect on total hemoglobin (ΔtHb). Finally, positive correlations were found between pulse oxygen saturation (SpO₂) and ΔTSI% and between SpO₂ and ΔO₂Hb for all tasks, while a negative correlation was observed between SpO₂ and ΔHHb. No correlation was found between SpO₂ or TSI% and cognitive performance.

Conclusion: In conclusion, cognitive function appears to be unaffected by acute exposure to acute normobaric hypoxia at FiO₂ above 12.7%. These results suggest a complete compensation of oxygenation of the prefrontal cortex region in young healthy subjects.

The integration of Large Language Models (LLMs) into scientific writing presents significant opportunities for scholars but also risks, including misinformation and plagiarism. A new body of literature is shaping to verify the capability of LLMs to execute the complex tasks that are inherent to academic publishing. In this context this study was driven by the need to critically assess LLM's out-of-the-box performance in generating evidence synthesis reviews. To this end, the signature topic of the authors' group, cross-education of voluntary force, was chosen as a model. We prompted a popular LLM (Gemini 2.5 Pro, Deep Research enabled) to generate a scoping review on the neural mechanisms underpinning cross-education. The resulting unedited manuscript was submitted for formal peer-review to four leading subject-matter experts. Their qualitative feedback on manuscript's structure, content, and integrity was collated and analyzed. Peer-reviewers identified critical failures at fundamental stages of the review process. The LLM failed to: (1) identify specific research questions; (2) adhere to established methodological frameworks; (3) implement trustworthy search strategies; (4) objectively synthesize data. Importantly, the Results section was deemed interpretative rather than descriptive. Referencing was agreed as the worst issue being inaccurate, biased toward open-access sources (84%), and containing instances of plagiarism. The LLM also failed to hierarchize evidence, presenting minor or underexplored findings as established evidence. The LLM generated a non-systematic, poorly structured, and unreliable narrative review. These findings suggest that the selected LLM is incapable of autonomously performing scientific synthesis and requires massive human supervision to correct the observed issues.