Salivary Biomarkers in College Female Basketball Players during the Late Competition Season

Abstract

The college basketball season involves multiple competitions and strenuous practice that have been linked to signs of overtraining. During the late competition period, evaluation of stress and recovery can assist coaches in determining player loads to ensure optimal performance. PURPOSE: To assess factors that reflect on stress and recovery through the study of salivary biomarkers. METHODS: Fifteen members of the college women’s basketball team volunteered to participate. Saliva samples (0.75mL) was collected 24 hours before (pre) and 24 hours after (post) a competition during the last three weeks of the regular season. Salivary samples were stored frozen and then sent to a laboratory for analyses at the end of the study period. Biomarker concentrations were determined using indirect ELIZA for testosterone, cortisol and secretory immunoglobulin A. In addition, at the time of the saliva collection, subjects were asked to report their perception of overall health, level of anxiety, and mood. ANOVA were used to test for significance (95 level of confidence) for pre-post measures and weekly variance. Correlations between perceptions of health, anxiety, mood, and salivary biomarkers were conducted. RESULTS: The means (SD) of the biomarkers and subjective measures are reported below.None of the salivary biomarkers were significantly different in pre-post comparisons nor across the three weeks. Changes in health scores, anxiety, or mood were not significantly different. Overall the testosterone showed significant correlations with cortisol (r=0.51), sigA (p=0.46), and health score (p=-.31). In addition, cortisol was significantly related to health score (p=-0.24). Health score showed a negative relationship with anxiety ranking (r=-.30) while no other relationships were evident. CONCLUSION: The lack of significance between these variables might indicate that these players did not show indication of stress or lack of recovery during this period of competition.