Potential Genetic Contributions of the Central Nervous System to a Predisposition to Elite Athletic Traits: State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives

The Genetic Profile of Combat Sport Athletes: A Systematic Review of Physiological, Psychological and Injury Risk Determinants

This systematic review aims to assess the genetic determinants influencing combat sports performance and address potential gaps in previous reviews. Twenty-four selected studies were analysed, investigating genetic influences on physiological performance, psychological traits, psychophysiological factors like pain perception, and injury susceptibility in combat sport athletes. The systematic literature search, using keywords, encompassed PubMed, Scopus, SportDiscus, Medline, and Google Scholar. The Covidence systematic review management software facilitated the screening process and the creation of the PRISMA flow diagram. The quality assessment complied with the PRISMA guidelines, featuring a custom 10-point scale and the STREGA criteria for more reliable study inclusion. Collectively, the 24 studies incorporated 18,989 participants, of which 3323 were combat athletes of majority European ancestry (71.7%) from various combat sports disciplines. Twenty-five unique genetic variants were significantly associated with combat sports performance across diverse domains. These included physiological performance (nine genetic variants), psychological traits (ten genetic variants), psychophysiological factors (one genetic variant), and injury susceptibility (four genetic variants). In conclusion, this systematic review lays the foundation for a more comprehensive exploration of the association between genetics and athletic performance in the demanding arena of combat sports, offering valuable insights for talent identification, training optimisation, and injury prevention.

Genetic association between ADRB2 rs1042713 and elite athletic performances in the Korean population

Athletic performance is a multifactorial trait influenced by environmental and genetic factors. Previous studies have identified various genes associated with athletic performance, including the β2-adrenergic receptor (ADRB2) gene, which has been consistently shown to be linked with elite athletic performance in diverse populations. The ADRB2 gene is known to play a key role in various biological systems, including cardiovascular, pulmonary, metabolic, and musculoskeletal functions. It acts by interacting with adrenaline. In particular, the ADRB2 rs1042713 (A > G) polymorphism has been associated with cardiovascular and respiratory functions. In addition, the association between the ADRB2 rs1042713 polymorphism and athletic performance has been reported. Thus, we conducted a case-control study to analyze the genetic association with ADRB2 rs1042713 polymorphism with 150 elite athletes, 116 college athletes, and 145 controls (control I) in the Korean population. The genotypes were determined by PCR-RFLP. As a result, we found significant differences in the distributions of genotype (p = 0.005) and allele (p = 0.002) frequencies between elite athletes and the control Ⅱ (control I + college athletes). We also found that the ADRB2 rs1042713 G/G genotype [odds ratio (OR) 2.42, 95% CI 1.384-4.235, p = 0.002] and the G allele (OR 1.58, 95% CI 1.184-2.098, p = 0.002) were significantly associated with elite athletic performance. Additionally, we observed a gender-specific association in female elite athletic performance (p = 0.0002 and p = 0.0002, respectively). In conclusion, our results suggest that the ADRB2 rs1042713 polymorphism may be associated with elite athletic performance in the Korean population. To validate these findings, additional studies with larger samples, including elite athletes from various sports types and diverse ethnic origins are needed.

Pain-sensorimotor interactions: New perspectives and a new model

How pain and sensorimotor behavior interact has been the subject of research and debate for many decades. This article reviews theories bearing on pain-sensorimotor interactions and considers their strengths and limitations in the light of findings from experimental and clinical studies of pain-sensorimotor interactions in the spinal and craniofacial sensorimotor systems. A strength of recent theories is that they have incorporated concepts and features missing from earlier theories to account for the role of the sensory-discriminative, motivational-affective, and cognitive-evaluative dimensions of pain in pain-sensorimotor interactions. Findings acquired since the formulation of these recent theories indicate that additional features need to be considered to provide a more comprehensive conceptualization of pain-sensorimotor interactions. These features include biopsychosocial influences that range from biological factors such as genetics and epigenetics to psychological factors and social factors encompassing environmental and cultural influences. Also needing consideration is a mechanistic framework that includes other biological factors reflecting nociceptive processes and glioplastic and neuroplastic changes in sensorimotor and related brain and spinal cord circuits in acute or chronic pain conditions. The literature reviewed and the limitations of previous theories bearing on pain-sensorimotor interactions have led us to provide new perspectives on these interactions, and this has prompted our development of a new concept, the Theory of Pain-Sensorimotor Interactions (TOPSMI) that we suggest gives a more comprehensive framework to consider the interactions and their complexity. This theory states that pain is associated with plastic changes in the central nervous system (CNS) that lead to an activation pattern of motor units that contributes to the individual's adaptive sensorimotor behavior. This activation pattern takes account of the biological, psychological, and social influences on the musculoskeletal tissues involved in sensorimotor behavior and on the plastic changes and the experience of pain in that individual. The pattern is normally optimized in terms of biomechanical advantage and metabolic cost related to the features of the individual's musculoskeletal tissues and aims to minimize pain and any associated sensorimotor changes, and thereby maintain homeostasis. However, adverse biopsychosocial factors and their interactions may result in plastic CNS changes leading to less optimal, even maladaptive, sensorimotor changes producing motor unit activation patterns associated with the development of further pain. This more comprehensive theory points towards customized treatment strategies, in line with the management approaches to pain proposed in the biopsychosocial model of pain.

Determinants of the prevalence and location of musculoskeletal pain in elite Para athletes

The tendency for musculoskeletal complaints, injuries, and traumas remains significant among Para athletes. The aim of the study was to identify and verify the variables that impact the incidence and location of musculoskeletal pain in elite athletes with disabilities. It was assumed, that the type of disability and not the type of sport, or the type of injuries and traumas is the crucial determinant of the prevalence and location of musculoskeletal pain in Para athletes. A direct-participatory observation method was used in the study including both subjective (surveys questionnaires) and objective (anthropometric) methods of assessment. The study included 35 male and female elite Para athletes from the Polish national team (sitting volleyball [SG1: n = 21], para swimming [SG2 = 14]). Both groups of Para athletes mostly reported pain in the neck (37%), and the lower back (34%). The Spearman's rank-order correlation showed several large inversely proportional relationships between somatic parameters and the values in the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire from the last 7 days (NMQ-7) for SG2 and some moderate to large correlations between body adiposity index (BAI) and the prevalence of injuries, the total number of rehabilitation sessions, the number of humeral joint and fingers rehabilitation sessions, breaks from training over 4 weeks in SG1. In both groups relationships were found between the duration of Paralympic training and the number of injuries and rehabilitation sessions (R = -0.4; P < .02) and between the exclusion from training for less 4 and over 4 weeks (R = -0.4; P < .03). The age of the Para athletes correlated with the NMQ-7 (wrists) (R = 0.4; P < .01). Both duration of disability and the type and severity of the disability may be crucial determinants of the prevalence and location of pain in the musculoskeletal system in Para athletes. Sport-specific training seems to induce specific musculoskeletal complaints.

Genetics and sports performance: the present and future in the identification of talent for sports based on DNA testing

The impact of genetics on physiology and sports performance is one of the most debated research aspects in sports sciences. Nearly 200 genetic polymorphisms have been found to influence sports performance traits, and over 20 polymorphisms may condition the status of the elite athlete. However, with the current evidence, it is certainly too early a stage to determine how to use genotyping as a tool for predicting exercise/sports performance or improving current methods of training. Research on this topic presents methodological limitations such as the lack of measurement of valid exercise performance phenotypes that make the study results difficult to interpret. Additionally, many studies present an insufficient cohort of athletes, or their classification as elite is dubious, which may introduce expectancy effects. Finally, the assessment of a progressively higher number of polymorphisms in the studies and the introduction of new analysis tools, such as the total genotype score (TGS) and genome-wide association studies (GWAS), have produced a considerable advance in the power of the analyses and a change from the study of single variants to determine pathways and systems associated with performance. The purpose of the present study was to comprehensively review evidence on the impact of genetics on endurance- and power-based exercise performance to clearly determine the potential utility of genotyping for detecting sports talent, enhancing training, or preventing exercise-related injuries, and to present an overview of recent research that has attempted to correct the methodological issues found in previous investigations.

Analysis of Selected Variants of DRD2 and ANKK1 Genes in Combat Athletes

The level of physical activity is conditioned by many different factors, including, among others, the personality traits of a person. Important is the fact that personality traits are a moderately heritable factor and on the basis of the analysis of several genes, various lifetime outcomes can be predicted. One of the most important pathways influencing personality traits is connected to the dopaminergic system; hence, we decided to analyze the DRD2 PROM. rs1799732, DRD2 rs1076560, DRD2 Tag1D rs1800498, DRD2 Ex8 rs6276, DRD2Tag1B rs1079597 and ANKK1 Tag1A rs180049. The research group included 258 male athletes (mean age = 26.02; SD = 8.30), whereas the control group was 284 healthy male volunteers matched for age (mean age = 22.89; SD = 4.78), both of Caucasian origin and without history of substance dependency or psychosis. Genomic DNA was extracted from venous blood using standard procedures. Genotyping was conducted with the real-time PCR method. Differences in the frequency of the DRD2Tag1B rs1079597 gene polymorphism were found between people practicing combat sports and the control group, and the DRD2 PROM. rs1799732, DRD2 rs1076560, DRD2 Tag1D rs1800498, DRD2 Ex8 rs6276, DRD2Tag1B rs1079597 and ANKK1 Tag1A rs1800497 genotypes and allele frequencies in the studied sample did not differ between the analyzed groups. Hence, we considered these polymorphic places as an interesting area for the further search for unambiguous associations between personality traits and attitude towards physical effort.