Gouveia MMS, do Nascimento MBA, Crispim AC, da Rocha ER, Dos Santos MPP, Bento EDS, De Aquino TM, Balikian P, Rodrigues NA, Ataide-Silva T, de Araujo GG, Sousa FADB. Metabolomic profiling of elite female soccer players: urinary biomarkers over a championship season.
Metabolomics 2024;
20:101. [PMID:
39235566 DOI:
10.1007/s11306-024-02164-5]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2024] [Accepted: 08/15/2024] [Indexed: 09/06/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION
In soccer, most studies evaluate metabolic profile changes in male athletes, often using data from a single match. Given the current landscape of women's soccer and the effects of biological sex on the physiological response and adaptation to exercise, more studies targeting female athletes and analyzing pre- and post-game moments throughout the season are necessary.
OBJECTIVES
To describe the metabolomics profile of female soccer athletes from an elite team in Brazil. The study observed the separation of groups in three pre- and post-game moments and identified the discriminating metabolites.
METHODS
The study included 14 female soccer athletes. Urine samples were collected and analyzed using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance in pre-game and immediate post-game moments over three national championship games. The metabolomics data were then used to generate OPLS-DA and VIP plots.
RESULTS
Forty-three metabolites were identified in the samples. OPLS-DA analyses demonstrated a progressive separation between pre-post conditions, as supported by an increasing Q2 value (0.534, 0.625, and 0.899 for games 1, 2 and 3, respectively) and the first component value (20.2% and 19.1% in games 1 and 2 vs. 29.9% in game 3). Eight out of the fifteen most discriminating metabolites appeared consistently across the three games: glycine, formate, citrate, 3-hydroxyvalerate, glycolic acid, trimethylamine, urea, and dimethylglycine.
CONCLUSION
The main difference between the three games was the increasing separation between groups throughout the championship. Since the higher VIP-scores metabolites are linked to energy and protein metabolism, this separation may be attributed several factors, one being the accumulation of fatigue.
Collapse