Effect of ACTN3 Gene on Strength and Endurance in Soccer Players

Abstract

Sports efficiency in activities in which strength and speed are the determining factors has been associated to the ACTN3 gene, which is responsible for the expression of α-actinin-3. Soccer is a mainly aerobic sport because of its long duration, but the acute actions that define the game demand a lot of strength and speed. The purpose of the present study was to compare the performance capacity of soccer players with different genotype groups of ACTN3 (XX, RX, and RR) in strength, speed, and endurance tests. Two hundred professional players of Brazilian soccer first division teams participated in this study. Speed, jump, and endurance test results were compared with the polymorphisms of the ACTN3 gene. It was noticed that RR individuals spent less time to run a 10-m path, compared with XX individuals (p < 0.05). The RR individuals also presented lower time rates at the 20- and 30-m path, compared with RX and XX individuals (p < 0.05). In jump tests, RR individuals presented higher rates, compared with RX and XX individuals (p < 0.05). As for aerobic tests, the XX individuals presented higher rates of V[Combining Dot Above]O2 max, compared with the RR group (p < 0.05), and did not differ from the RX group. The main conclusion of this study is that soccer players of genotype ACTN3/RR are the fastest in short distances and present higher jump potential. ACTN3/XX individuals presented the highest aerobic capacity. These findings can be used in training load adjustment and can influence the development of tactical schemes in soccer matches.

Associação de polimorfismos genéticos com capacidades físicas e composição corporal em idosas

“…It is noteworthy that the differences between results found in this study and those of literature may be related to differences in the age group studied, test protocols used, countries of origin and level of physical activity of participants 13,27 , and in the future it would be interesting to analyze whether there is variation in gene and protein expression of ACE and ACTN3 in different age groups and subjects with different levels of physical activity, despite the difficulty in obtaining the tissues in which these genes are expressed (kidneys and lungs for ACE and skeletal muscles for ACTN3), which would help in the understanding of our results. In addition, the number of individuals in our study, as well as in studies used for discussion, can be considered a limiting factor due to the importance of a large number of subjects in studies with population genetics.…”

“…Regarding the aerobic capacity, literature points to a predisposition to better aerobic capacity of allele X of ACTN3 gene in adults 11,13,27 . However, no studies were found in literature associating flexibility with R577X polymorphism for the ACTN3 gene, as well as studies associating flexibility with aerobic capacity in the elderly.…”

Blood flow restriction and blood flow restriction resistance training improves muscle mass, muscle strength and mobility in an older patient with osteoarthrosis carrying the ACTN3 endurance genotype: A case report

“…The ACTN3 RR and RX genotypes have been associated with high speed and strength in athletes, and the XX genotype has been associated with aerobic endurance. 3,4 Interestingly, the patient presented the endurance type genotype (XX). As endurance athletes present increased resistance to fatigue, it is possible that the high muscle hypertrophy phenotype herein observed was the summation of the ACTN3 endurance genotype, plus the BFRT.…”

“…Fernanda Lima-Soares, 1,2 Jason M Cholewa, 2,3 Kassiana de Araujo Pessôa, 1,2 Antonio H Lancha Jr, 2,4,5 Emerson Silami-Garcia, 1 Ricardo de Macedo Chaves, 6 Jakob D Lauver, 3 Mac Hall, 3 Gilberto C Laurentino, 5 Christian ET Cabido, 1,2 Fabrício E Rossi 7 and Nelo E Zanchi 1,2…”

Genetic Variants and Mixed Sport Disciplines: A Comparison among Soccer, Combat and Motorcycle Athletes

“…Among the candidate polymorphisms potentially associated with muscle function and physical performance, the most extensively studied are the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), the R577X variant of the actinin-α 3 gene (ACTN3), the muscle isoform of creatine kinase (CK-MM), the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) and recently the SLC2A4 (9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14). The alternative polymorphic variants of these candidate polymorphisms were demonstrated to be associated with sprint/power or endurancerelated disciplines with reasonable replication in different groups of athletes (15)(16)(17)(18). Indeed, the Iallele of the insertion(I)/deletion(D) polymorphism in the ACE gene is one of the most suggested determinant of aerobic capacity in endurance-oriented performance (8).…”