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| MEDIA CONTACT |
Donna Krupa
The American Physiological Society
301.634.7209
dkrupa@the-aps.org
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HILTON HEAD, SC—More than 600 experts in the area of physical activity and the body’s response to exercise are meeting September 25-27, 2008 in Hilton Head for the 2008 American Physiological Society (APS) Intersociety Meeting, "The Integrative Biology of Exercise." The conference features research presentations and discussions on the latest in physiology and exercise. Scientific and medical research being presented at this year’s meeting includes:
 Women Do Not Recover Their Muscle Strength as Fast as Men after Wearing a Cast —
Women are four times more likely than men to experience a broken forearm and require a cast (immobilization). To examine whether the effects of casting were similar between the sexes, researchers examined immobilized volunteers for a period of three weeks. They determined that while men were able to regain 99% of their strength within a week of removing the cast, women’s strength was still 30% lower when compared to before the cast was applied. These finding may have implications for the treatment of fractures based on gender lines.
Lessons from the Iditarod — Dogs are often called “man’s best friend,” and rightly so. Consider, for example, that they never interrupt us when we talk, are always happy to see us when we arrive home, and provide comfort when we are lovesick. Since dogs became domesticated 15,000 years ago, they have worked with and lived next to humans, which some say may account for the special bond. Each of the 400 breeds and varieties are unique, but only one stands out as the ultra-athlete canine: the racing sled dog.
Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs and the Effect on Muscle Repair and Regeneration —
Statins are powerful drugs that reduce “bad” cholesterol and thus cut the risk of a heart attack. While these medications offer tremendous benefits to millions, they can carry side effects for some. The most frequently reported consequence is fatigue, and about nine percent of patients report statin-related pain. Both can be exacerbated when statin doses are increased, or physical activity is added. The results of a new study may offer another note of caution for high-dose statin patients. Working with primary human satellite cell cultures, researchers have found that statins at higher doses may affect the ability of the skeletal muscles–which allow the body to move–to repair and regenerate themselves.
 Researchers Discover That Growing Up Too Fast May Mean Dying Young in Honey Bees —
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) occur as a by-product of aerobic metabolism and impair cellular function by damaging proteins, nucleotides and lipids. Organisms possess a variety of anti-oxidant mechanisms to mitigate the effects of ROS, and the oxidative stress model of aging and senescence suggests that physiological performance declines with age due to lifetime accrual of ROS-induced damage and progressively limited anti-oxidant capacity. Hence, the onset, pace and duration of energetically-intense behaviors should affect lifetime kinetics of ROS-induced damage, anti-oxidant responses, physiological capacity and longevity. A new study examines how these traits in honey bees are affected by age and behavioral intensity, and is the first to use such an approach to test the oxidative stress model of aging in a free-living organism.
For Overweight Patients with Insulin Sensitivity, Even One Session of Exercise Can Improve Metabolic Health
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One out of every three Americans is obese. These individuals are at greater risk for additional diseases, since obesity leads to other health problems, such as diabetes. A new study shows that even a single bout of exercise helps obese individuals increase their body’s fat-burning rate and improve their metabolic health.
 Anabolic Steroids Still Provide a Competitive Edge in Power Lifting Even Years after Doping has Ended
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Anabolic steroids are synthetic hormones derived from the human male hormone testosterone. The use of steroids has been suspected in professional baseball and other sports where building muscle strength, rather than endurance, is paramount. Power lifting is such a sport. A team of researchers has examined the impact of anabolic steroid use on power lifters years after the athletes had ceased to take the drugs. The researchers found that while physical traces of the drug no longer remained, changes in the shoulder and quadriceps still gave lifters an advantage years later.
Equine Research into Movement and Breathing May Translate into Help for Other Horses and Humans
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The coordination of two systems are key for any horse to walk, trot, gallop or win a race. The first are the lower limbs, which allow the animal to move along on a “spring-like” tendon. The second is a complicated respiratory system, which allows a horse to take in one breadth for every stride they make while racing. For more than a decade a team of researchers has been working to unlock the secrets of equines. Their findings may provide a springboard for better muscular horse health, and a different approach to breathing devices for humans.
Full copies of the releases are available at www.The-APS.org/press, or by clicking the images above.
ABOUT THE APS
Physiology is the study of how molecules, cells, tissues and organs function to create health or disease. The American Physiological Society has been an integral part of this scientific discovery process since it was established in 1887. The Society has 10,500 members and publishes 14 peer-reviewed journals containing almost 4,000 articles annually.
MEDIA REGISTRATION AND INTERVIEWS
Members of the media are invited to attend the conference. Authors of the scientific papers as well as other researcher are available to speak to the press. For further information, please contact Donna Krupa at 301.634.7209 (office), 703.967.2751 (cell) or DKrupa@the-APS.org. Or log on to the APS website at www.The-aps.org/press today.
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