Screening of Potential Stress Biomarkers in Sweat Associated with Sports Training

Maria João Nunes,José J G Moura,João Paulo Noronha,Cristina M Cordas,Luís Cobra Branco

doi:10.1186/s40798-020-00294-3

Maria João Nunes, José J G Moura + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-020-00294-3

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Abstract

BackgroundIntense and continuous physical training in sports is related with psychological and physiological stress, affecting the health and well-being of athletes. The development of non-invasive sampling methodologies is essential to consider sweat as a potential biological fluid for stress biomarker assessment. In the current work, the identification in sweat samples of potential molecules that may be used as stress biomarkers was pursued.MethodsA sweat pool sample from football players after a 90-min intense training game was studied.ResultsAn analysis method using liquid chromatography with detection by tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MSMS) to attain a screening profile of sweat composition is presented. The major focus was on neurotransmitters (e.g. monoamines and metabolites) and other biological molecules related with physical training, such as precursors of biogenic amines (phenylaniline, tyrosine, etc.).ConclusionsThis study allowed the identification of small biomolecules, neurotransmitters and other related molecules in sweat that are potentially associated with stress conditions. The developed methodology intends to contribute to the assessment and study of physical and psychological stress biomarkers related with intense sports using non-invasive methods.

Highlights

IntroductionAthletes and other groups of people that have an intense physical training (Military, Fireman, amongst others) frequently suffer episodes of physical and/or psychological stress which may have serious consequences (increased susceptibility to inflammatory diseases such as asthma and autoimmunity) and influence on the individual behaviour and health [1]
Athletes and other groups of people that have an intense physical training (Military, Fireman, amongst others) frequently suffer episodes of physical and/or psychological stress which may have serious consequences and influence on the individual behaviour and health [1]
The experimental signal described by the normalization level (NL), which describes the intensity of the base peak results, was the criteria to decide about the biomarkers detection

Summary

Introduction

Athletes and other groups of people that have an intense physical training (Military, Fireman, amongst others) frequently suffer episodes of physical and/or psychological stress which may have serious consequences (increased susceptibility to inflammatory diseases such as asthma and autoimmunity) and influence on the individual behaviour and health [1]. There are multiple ways of detecting biomarkers in the human body, such as the analysis of the different physical parameters and by the biochemical analysis of body fluids like urine, saliva, sweat, and blood. Less invasive methods such as sweat analysis are of increasing interest for continuous health monitoring [6]. Eccrine sweat glands, located across most of the body surface, are primarily responsible for thermoregulatory sweating [9, 10] by producing a fluid that is largely water (99%), salts [11] and a broad range of biological metabolites [12,13,14,15]. The identification in sweat samples of potential molecules that may be used as stress biomarkers was pursued

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