Frontiers in Physiology

During flight, pilots are exposed to unique environmental factors such as low air pressure, acceleration, and psychological stress, which can lead to altered glucose metabolism that poses a threat to flight safety. Traditional fingerstick blood glucose monitoring has drawbacks such as the need for intermittent readings, time-consuming procedures, and passive monitoring. Conventional continuous gl…

Track-and-field performance fluctuates week to week under the joint influence of training load, recovery, autonomic regulation, and psychological readiness, and wearables now enable continuous physiological monitoring; however, whether bodily signals and readiness markers contribute differently to performance prediction across technical and physical events remains unclear. In a prospective longit…

Rationale Hyperpolarized 129 XeMRI can be used to quantify ventilation heterogeneity. The radio-frequency bias correction method has been shown to preserve the physiological ventilation gradient in healthy individuals. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and obese asthma would have worsened gravity-dependent and gravity-independent ventilation distribu…

Background In chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)–obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) overlap syndrome, the apnea–hypopnea index (AHI) confirms and grades OSA but does not fully explain nocturnal hypoxemia or carbon dioxide retention. Objective We propose a post-diagnostic, mechanism-informed framework for interpreting nocturnal oxygenation and ventilation after both COPD and OSA have been obj…

Background Neck functional capacity is clinically relevant in sports medicine for performance support, screening, and injury prevention in sports characterized by acceleration, contact, and sustained precision demands. Ultrasound can quantify local muscle morphology and may improve interpretation of neck performance beyond crude anthropometry (e.g., neck girth) and global strength indicators. Obj…

Personnel in Isolated, Confined, and Extreme (ICE) environments face unique psychological stressors that can compromise performance, safety, and mission success. Traditional psychological monitoring approaches, predominantly retrospective questionnaires and clinical interviews, may inadequately capture the dynamic nature of psychological adaptation in these demanding contexts. This mini-review ex…

Despite decades of research, spatial disorientation, which is the incorrect perception of one’s orientation relative to gravity, remains one of the leading causes of aviation mishaps. In this mini-review, we highlight the role of the vestibular system towards generating disorientation. Specifically, in the absence of other cues, the brain is incapable of distinguishing between the acceleration ca…

This study evaluated the effects of dietary Prekese ( Tetrapleura tetraptera ) fruit extract (PFE) on the growth, haemato-biochemical profile, antioxidant status, and economic efficiency of Nile tilapia ( Oreochromis niloticus ) fingerlings. Five isonitrogenous (35% crude protein) and isolipidic diets were formulated with graded PFE levels: 0.0 (control), 5.0, 10.0, 15.0, and 20.0 g/kg. Fish (5.2…

Background The high prevalence of overweight or obesity in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is strongly associated with impaired quality of life and an increased risk of long-term complications. Poor glycemic control remains a fundamental clinical challenge in this population. Although resistance training (RT) is an effective intervention for improving HbA1c levels, the optimal dosing paramet…

Introduction As an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis (AS), hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) exerts its pathogenic effects primarily through the induction of macrophage ferroptosis. As a selective autophagic process mediated by nuclear receptor coactivator 4 (NCOA4), ferritinophagy directly influences ferroptosis via its regulation of cellular iron balance. However, whether homocysteine (Hcy)…

Background and study aim Combat sports involve repeated high-intensity efforts separated by short recovery periods, creating substantial demands on aerobic function and recovery. However, little is known about whether resting metabolic and redox-related biomarkers are associated with cardiorespiratory fitness in combat sport athletes. This pilot cross-sectional study examined the associations of …

Background Prostaglandin E2 (PGE 2 ) is an important local mediator in the urinary bladder, where it contributes to the regulation of detrusor excitability and is implicated in pathological conditions such as overactive bladder. Although previous studies have shown that exogenous PGE enhances bladder contractile activity, its effects on calcium signaling in individual detrusor smooth muscle cells…

Background HIIT is a time-efficient exercise strategy for adults with overweight or obesity, but trial findings are heterogeneous and whether age independently modifies cardiometabolic response remains uncertain. Methods PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched from inception to December 2025. Random-effects meta-analyses estimated weighted mean differences for SBP a…

Objective To evaluate the effects of exercise on fall-related functional performance in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis or low bone mass and to explore whether intervention effects differed according to the reported consistency of the exercise prescription with American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommendations. Methods Six electronic databases were searched from inception to 3 May…

Background Diaphragmatic dysfunction contributes to exercise intolerance in COPD, but whether BMI shapes baseline function and response to exercise remains unclear. This secondary analysis characterized BMI-related diaphragmatic phenotypes and whether diaphragm thickening fraction (TFdi) links exercise training to functional improvement. Methods Data were analyzed from 103 patients with stable CO…

Among potential molecular mechanisms supporting cardiovascular homeostasis, miRNAs (miRs) represent interesting candidates. We recently highlighted that miR-199a controls the Nitric oxide synthase/nitric oxide (NOS/NO) pathway in the endothelium and showed that both mature strands of miR-199a are overexpressed in heart and vessels from a mouse model of hypertension. Here we investigated the fate …

Multiple sclerosis associated fatigue (MS fatigue) is one of the most common and troubling symptoms experienced by people with MS, but the cause of MS fatigue remains unknown. The nature of cognitive and physical exhaustion suggests that MS fatigue can be a metabolic disease that impacts energy demanding processes such as neuronal activity and skeletal muscle contraction. In this study, we invest…

Background Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is the most prevalent musculoskeletal degenerative disease worldwide. Periarticular muscle abnormalities are considered closely associated with its pathogenesis, yet the relationships between various muscle parameters and KOA remain controversial. Objective To clarify the correlations of thigh muscle quantity, muscle quality, and muscle strength with KOA throu…

Propofol, one of the most widely used intravenous anesthetics, is undergoing a transformative identity shift from a purely surgical agent to a potential therapeutic tool for neuropsychiatric disorders. This review synthesizes current evidence on the emerging field of propofol therapeutics, with a focus on its rapid antidepressant, anti-anhedonia, and anxiolytic effects. We first examine prelimina…

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced during metabolism through mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation and NADPH oxidase activity. In cancer, ROS exhibit a paradoxical, concentration-dependent dual role. At low to moderate levels, ROS promote tumor cell survival, EMT, and metastasis, and at high levels, ROS overwhelm antioxidant defenses and induce regulated cell death (RCD); ferroptosis, a…