Pre-activation Phase Research Articles

Neuromuscular characteristics and fatigue during 10 km running.

This study investigated neuromuscular characteristics and fatigue during 10 km running (10 K) performance in well-trained endurance athletes with different distance running capability. Nine high (HC) and ten low (LC) caliber endurance athletes performed the 10 K on a 200 m indoor track, constant velocity lap (CVL, 4.5 m x s(-1)) 5 times during the course of the 10 K and maximal 20 m speed test before (20 m(b)) and after (20 m(a)) the 10 K. Running velocity (V), ground contact times (CT), ground reaction forces (F) and electromyographic activity (EMG) of the leg muscles (vastus lateralis; VL, biceps femoris; BF, gastrocnemius; GA) were measured during 20 m(b), 20 m(a), and CVLs. The 10 K times differed (p<0.001) between HC and LC (36.3+/-1.2 and 39.2+/-2.0 min, respectively) but no differences were observed in 20 m(b) velocity. The 10 K led to significant (p<0.05) decreases in V, F and integrated EMG (IEMG) and increases in CTs of 20 m(a) in both groups. No changes were observed in HC or LC in F and IEMG during the CVLs but HC showed shorter (p<0.05) mean CT of CVLs than LC. A significant correlation (r = -0.56, p<0.05) was observed between the mean CT of CVLs and velocity of 10 K (V10K). Pre-activity of GA in relation to the IEMG of the total contact phase during the CVLs was higher (p<0.05) in HC than LC. The relative IEMGs of VL and GA in the propulsion phase compared to the IEMG of the 20 m(b) were lower (p<0.05) in HC than LC. In conclusion, marked fatigue took place in both HC and LC during the 10 K but the fatigue-induced changes in maximal 20 m run did not differentiate endurance athletes with different V10K. However, a capability to produce force rapidly throughout the 10 K accompanied with optimal preactivation and contact phase activation seem to be important for 10 km running performance in well trained endurance athletes.

Cambium pre-activation in beech correlates with a strong temporary increase of calcium in cambium and phloem but not in xylem cells

Using secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), calcium was imaged in cambium cells and in the adjacent secondary phloem and xylem cells during the different phases of cambium functioning in beech ( Fagus sylvatica L.). At the end of the period of quiescence, immediately before the resumption of cell divisions (i.e. at the cambium pre-activation phase), a strong temporary increase of calcium concentration was observed to take place in cambium and phloem but not in xylem cells.

Effects of differently induced stretch loads on neuromuscular control in drop jump exercise.

The neuromuscular characteristics of the triceps surae and vastus lateralis muscles and interactions between the pre-activation of these muscles and the muscle output itself during ground contact were investigated during various types of stretch-shortening cycle muscle loading. The loading of the muscles was effected by using three different types of drop jump exercise. These jumps allowed separate modifications of the loading of the leg extensor muscles by changing the velocity of the centre of gravity (CG) or by changing directly the body mass, which was also affected by changing artificially the acceleration of the CG. It was found that the eccentric peak angular velocity of the ankle joint was related to the various precontact and eccentric parameters in all the different types of jumping exercise. The correlations were higher for the gastrocnemius muscle (P < 0.001) than for the soleus muscle (n.s., P < 0.01). In all the experimental conditions, the pre-activation of the measured muscles started well before the impact of contact with the ground. However, the duration of the pre-activation phase depended on the type of stretch exercise. The results would suggest a clear interaction between the pre-activation of the muscles and that part of the muscle output which is effected by the segmental stretch reflex system. The control mechanism of the pre-activation itself appears to be multiple in character. It seems reasonable to assume that the pre-activation is preprogrammed, but which can, however, be modified by proprioceptive, vestibular and visual inputs. Thus, the possibility of conscious modification of the expected muscle load must be considered.

EMG activities and ground reaction forces during fatigued and nonfatigued sprinting

The present study was designed to investigate EMG activities and ground reaction forces during fatigued and nonfatigued running. Ten male sprint runners volunteered to run a maximal 20-m speed test, a 400-m time trial, and submaximal 20-m runs at the average speed of the first 100 m of the 400 m. During the latter stage of each run, ground reaction forces and EMG activity of four leg muscles were recorded. EMG activities were time averaged during three phases of running: preactivation, braking, and propulsion phase. The resultant ground reaction forces both in the braking (P < 0.001) and in the propulsion phase (P < 0.01) were greater in the maximal and submaximal 20 m than at the end of the 400 m. The averaged EMG during the braking phase (P < 0.01) and during the total ground phase (P < 0.05) was smaller in the submaximal 20 m than at the end of the 400 m. On the other hand the averaged EMG was greater during the maximal 20 m than at the end of the 400 m during the propulsion phase (P < 0.001) and during the total ground phase (P < 0.05). In addition, the more the preactivity increased the less the resultant ground reaction force decreased in the braking phase during the 400 m run (r = 0.77, P < 0.05). It was concluded that the role of the increased neural activation was to compensate for muscular fatigue and the preactivation had an important role in maintaining force production during the 400-m run. In addition, the fatigue was different in each working muscle.

Inhibition of cdc2 activation by INH/PP2A.

INH, a type 2A protein phosphatase (PP2A), negatively regulates entry into M phase and the cyclin B-dependent activation of cdc2 in Xenopus extracts. INH appears to be central to the mechanism of the trigger for mitotic initiation, as it prevents the premature activation of cdc2. We first show that INH is a conventional form of PP2A with a B alpha regulatory subunit. We next explore the mechanism by which it inhibits cdc2 activation by examining the effect of purified PP2A on the reaction pathways controlling cdc2 activity. Our results suggest that although PP2A inhibits the switch in tyrosine kinase and tyrosine phosphatase activities accompanying mitosis, this switch is a consequence of the inhibition of some other rate-limiting event. In the preactivation phase, PP2A inhibits the pathway leading to T161 phosphorylation, suggesting that this activity may be one of the rate-limiting events for transition. However, our results also suggest that the accumulation of active cdc2/cyclin complexes during the lag is only one of the events required for triggering entry into mitosis.

Neuromuscular Control of the Human Leg Extensor Muscles in Jump Exercises Under Various Stretch-Load Conditions

Ten active males performed reactive drop jumps from a height of 40 cm in six experimental conditions: jumps with additional loads of 100 N (BW + 100 N) and 200 N (BW + 200 N), an ordinary jump with body weight (BW) and three jumps in which the body weight was artificially reduced (BW-172 N, BW-337 N and BW-495 N). The vertical ground reaction forces, the angular displacement in the knee and ankle joints as well as the surface electromyogram (EMGs) of the triceps surae muscles and tibialis ant. muscle were recorded. When compared to the control condition (BW) in the jumps with extra load and in the jumps with reduced body weight, both the take-off velocity as well as the mean vertical ground reaction force were decreased during the push-off phase. The integrated EMG before ground contact as well as the duration of the preactivation phase was significantly reduced as a function of the load condition. Upon the touchdown, the coactivation of the muscles acting around the ankle joint was greatest in the control jump. Through all experimental conditions, the mean activation amplitude remained rather constant both for the impact as well as for the push-off phase of the contact. It is concluded that the centrally programmed activity prior to the contact can be seen as the decisive mechanism in the regulation of the stiffness behavior of the tendomuscular system. The extent of the preprogrammed activity determines mainly the physical output of the entire jump exercise.

Electromyographic evidence of selective fatigue during the eccentric phase of stretch/shortening cycles in man

Ten male subjects were tested to determine the effects of muscle fatigue upon the activation pattern of the two main ankle extensor muscles, the 'slow-twitch' soleus (SOL) and the relatively 'fast-twitch' medial gastrocnemius (MG), during a fatiguing 60-s trial of hopping to maximal height. The myoelectric signals from SOL and MG were recorded together with the vertical ground reaction force signal and analysed by means of a computer-aided electromyograph (EMG) contour analysis, i.e. two-dimensional frequency distributions were obtained relating the activation patterns of the two synergists. The EMGs were also full-wave rectified and integrated (IEMG) according to three phases of the hopping movement (PRE, pre-activation phase; ECC, eccentric phase; CON, concentric phase). Results indicated that there were significant decreases (P less than 0.01) in the peak ground reaction force, the height of hopping and the mechanical power per unit body weight at the end of the fatiguing contractions. These decreases in mechanical parameters were accompanied by significant (P less than 0.01) decreases in all three phases of MG IEMG while SOL IEMG showed no such significant declines, except in the CON phase. Thus, the decreased mechanical parameters could in large part be accounted for by the substantial and selective decline of the excitation level of the relatively fast-twitch MG muscle. Our data suggest that the centrally mediated pre-activation of the fatiguable MG muscle as well as the MG activation during the eccentric phase, which is largely controlled by supraspinal inputs and stretch-reflex modulation, are most affected by fatigue changes during repeated maximal stretch/shortening cycles of the ankle extensors.

Xylogénèse chez les Dicotylédones arborescentes. IV. Influence des bourgeons, de l'acide (β-indolyl acétique et de l'acide gibberellique sur la réactivation cambiale et la xylogénèse dans les jeunes tiges de Hêtre

The application, in the middle of April, of a mixture of IAA (10−4 M) and GA3 (10−4 M), to apical stem of young beeches, disbudded more than 1 month ago, brings about the formation of an unusual early wood, composed of small xylary elements only, on a short distance. If the phytohormones are applied immediately on the following day after disbudding, the young trees produce normal early wood, on a long distance. GA3 applied alone has hardly any effect on cambial reactivation; IAA applied alone stimulates less cambial reactivation and xylogenesis than the mixture of IAA and GA3. The study of [3H]-IAA transport in apical shoots of the same trees shows that beeches disbudded 1 month ago have lost the ability to activate the auxin transport. Disbudding, carried out in the middle or at the end of the preactivation phase, affects the IAA transport system within a few days; a further exogenous phytohormone application cannot then replace buds and promote the renewal of cambial activity. In young beeches, the resumption of tissue ability to polarize the auxin transport, which in February characterizes the beginning of the preactivation phase, depends on buds; the maintenance and development of this ability are related to their presence.

A Study of Teacher Planning

and the variety of instructional materials available, the emphasis on meeting objectives of the school or the district, and the wide range of student aptitudes to be found in most classrooms (1). Recently, it has become popular to describe teachers as problem-solvers and decision-makers (2, 3). Indeed, many educational researchers have contended that the most important teaching skill is decision-making (4). One consequence of this view is the temptation to portray the teacher as a rational information-processor who is continually making diagnoses, testing hypotheses, and making decisions. This notion of teaching may describe some moments of teaching better than others; and the moments that the model describes may be few and far between, for the teacher may seldom have opportunities for logical, rational behavior in the classroom. The swift pace and the immediacy of the teacher's interactions with pupils often preclude the rational, purposeful thinking that is normally associated with problem-solving and decision-making (5). To understand teaching as a purposeful, reflective activity, it is necessary to look at those times when thoughtful behavior is most likely to occur. The description of the teacher as problem-solver and decisionmaker may be most appropriate during the preactive phase of teaching (6). Preac-