The purpose of this study was to examine former Brazilian high-performance volleyball athletes’ perspectives on life skills learning and transfer through their experiences in sport. This qualitative study involved a narrative approach through composite vignettes. The creation of the composite vignettes included the most relevant life events and participants’ perspectives through their accounts of the experience transformed in one unique voice. Participants were five former Brazilian high-performance volleyball athletes. Data were collected through rappaport timeline and semi-structured interviews. Findings showed athletes were able to learn and transfer life skills throughout their careers and later in life through an implicit approach to life skills development and transfer. The trials and tribulations of high-performance sport were, in these cases, used as life lessons that transformed into life skills used in athletes’ lives beyond sport. DMAMCL Moving forward, more research is needed to understand the high-performance sport’s role in life skills transfer and its implication for athletes’ development across socio-cultural contexts.Postactivation performance enhancement (PAPE) is a principle that an acute bout of high-intensity voluntary exercise is followed by an enhancement in strength, speed or power production. This study intended to show a direct correlation between intensity, specificity and the outcome of a maximal task of sprint accelerations compared to a previously defined weighted plyometric intervention. In a randomised controlled, double-blind trial, professional footballers undertook 20 m maximal sprint accelerations at a baseline and at 2 and 6 min post-intervention after 1 of 3 interventions; 2 repetitions of 20 m sprint accelerations (S), 3 × 10 alternative leg weighted bounding (P) and control (C). Relative to the baseline there was a significant improvement for S over 10 and 20 m at 2 min of 0.12m.s-1 and 0.11m.s-1 and 6 min of 0.11m.s-1 and 0.12m.s-1. Relative to the baseline P also had a significant improvement over 10 and 20 m at 2 min 0.09m.s-1 and 0.09m.s-1 and 6 min of 0.11m.s-1 and 0.09m.s-1. There was a significant improvement in C between 2 and 6 min post-intervention at 10 and 20 m of 0.06m.s-1 and 0.08m.s-1. This finding suggests a maximal sprint acceleration may enhance the outcome of a subsequent maximal sprint acceleration at 2 min, but the latter results could not be directly attributed to the interventions as previous testing is likely to have influenced these outcomes.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by persistent airflow limitation and high symptom burden that interferes with physical activity and results in a vicious cycle of inactivity and symptom worsening. The aim of this multicenter, observational study was to determine the prevalence and severity of morning, daytime and night-time symptoms as well as patterns of physical activity levels (PALs) and their interrelation in Belgian COPD patients, enrolled in the multinational SPACE study (NCT03031769).

Socio-demographic, socio-economic and disease characteristics data were collected from patients’ medical records as part of a routine visit to their primary care practice or pulmonologist. Dedicated questionnaires were used to evaluate respiratory symptoms for each part of the day. PAL was assessed by means of self- and interview-reported tools, and physician’s judgment. Patients were also classified according to GOLD recommendations 2013 and 2017.

Overall, 102 Belgian patients participasification groups. New approaches are deemed necessary to objectively identify and activate sedentary patients.Multiple object tracking (MOT) and goal-directed movements are both based on attentional processes. This study focused on the instant effect of attentive tracking with respect to pointing performance. We measured the precision of pointing to the targets of an MOT task immediately after the tracking period when all the objects were still in motion, and to the precision of pointing to moving objects in the task without attentional tracking. The results demonstrated that an increase in the attentional tracking load was the primary factor that decreased pointing precision, although visual load may also contribute to this influence. We also manipulated the relationship between the number of targets and the density of the MOT display (the total number of objects displayed), which affected the MOT accuracy but not the pointing precision.C4 grasses are common species in rangelands around the world and represent an attractive option for second-generation biofuel production. Although they display high polysaccharide content and reach great levels of biomass accumulation, there is a major technical issue to be addressed before they can be used for bioethanol industrial production lignin removal. Concerning this, Pycnoporus and Ganoderma fungal genera have been highlighted due to their ability to hydrolyze lignocellulose in biological pretreatments. Our goals here were to evaluate the pretreatment efficiency using the secretome of species from Pycnoporus and Ganoderma spp. harvested from a glucose-free inductive medium (using a C4 grass) and to identify the fungal enzymatic activities responsible for the lignin degradation and glucose release. Our results show that P. sanguineus secretome exhibits a higher activity of lignocellulolytic enzymes such as cellulases, xylanases, laccases, and manganese peroxidases compared with that from G. resinaceum. Interestingly, zymograms in the presence of 2 M glucose suggest that a β-glucosidase isoform from P. sanguineus could be glucose tolerant. The proteomic approach carried out allowed the identification of 73 and 180 different proteins in G. resinaceum and P. sanguineus secretomes, respectively, which were functionally classified in five main categories and a miscellaneous group. These results open new avenues for future experimental work that lead to a deeper comprehension and a greater application of the mechanisms underlying lignocellulosic biomass degradation.The combination of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and photothermal therapy (PTT) has emerged as a promising strategy for complete tumor ablation therapy. Herein, a boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY)-conjugated hyaluronic acid polymer that can self-assemble to form the nanoparticles (BODIPY-HA NPs) was prepared for combined cancer PDT and PTT. The fluorescence emission and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation of BODIPY-HA NPs were inhibited because of the π-π stacking behavior of BODIPY, resulting in photothermal effect under 808 nm light irradiation. Upon the internalization by cancer cells, the BODIPY-HA NPs could disassemble into BODIPY-HA molecules, with the recovery of the fluorescence and ROS generation for PDT. Importantly, in vitro results confirmed that combined PTT and PDT have exhibited better anticancer effect than PTT alone upon 808 nm laser irradiation. These results showed that the self-assembled BODIPY-HA NPs may be a promising nanomedicine for synergistic cancer PDT and PTT.