Altitude Training | Hypoxic Training

Objective:In order to provide a theoretical basis and applied methods for hypoxic training applied in sports practice, this thesis studied the mechanism of hypoxic training promoting angiogenesis on muscular tissue by exploring the effect of hypoxic training on regulating the hypoxic responsive genes on muscular issue, the effect of the hypoxic responsive genes on boosting angiogenesis on muscular issues, and the angiogenesis mechanism of hypoxic training muscular tissue.Material and Methods:Hypoxia cell culture and electrophoretic mobility shift assay were applied to study the protein-DNA binding activity of hypoxia induced factor-1 and vascular endothelium growth factor gene, and fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 of human umbilicus vein endothelial cell under hypoxia. 3×3 factorial experiment, progressive treadmill exercise, hypoxia and super-hypoxia increasing by degree were used to establish animal model with different training pattern and different hypoxic stimulus. Thereafter, Blood-gas analysis, in situ hybridization, immunohistochemical technology and computer image processing methods were used to study the effect of hypoxic training on the oxygen binding status of arterial blood, the effect of oxygen binding status of arterial blood on hypoxia induced factor-1αof muscular tissue, and then the promoting effect of hypoxic training on genes transcription of vascular endothelium growth factor and fms-like tyrosine kinase-1. In addition, Enzyme linked immunosorbnent assay, Stereology, immunohistochemical technology and computer image processing methods were used to study the accelerating effect of vascular endothelium growth factor and fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 on hypoxic training angiogenesis of muscular tissue. In the end, transmission electron microscope was applied to study the morphological mode of angiogenesis of hypoxic training muscular tissue.Conclusions:Different Oxygen content mixed gases were administered to culture human umbilical vein endothelium cell to found hypoxia cell culture model for ex vivo study of hypoxic training, and an animal model of hypoxic training was successfully established by progressive treadmill exercise and hypoxic stimulus with progressive hypoxia.Simple hypoxia (hypoxia content from 18.2kPa to 15.2 kPa ) and super- hypoxia (hypoxia content from 17.4 kPa to 11.3kPa ) could not increase density of micro- blood vessel. Normoxic training, hypoxic training, and hypoxic administration after training could increase density of micro- blood vessel. Interaction occurred between hypoxic administration and training pattern, and hypoxic administration and training pattern had different main effects. From the changing of micro- blood vessel, hypoxic training was found to be better than normoxic training to micro- blood vessel on muscular tissue.In vivo, hypoxia could increase binding activity of HIF-1 of culture human umbilical vein endothelium cell and VEGF、Flt-1 DNA. The binding activity was regulated by oxygen content within a certain range. Ex vivo, hypoxia could decrease arterial blood oxygen binding; hypoxic training was the most efficient stimulus to decrease arterial partial pressure of oxygen, while it could decrease arterial blood oxygen binding to a large degree. The transcription regulation mechanism of angiogenesis of hypoxic training muscular tissue was: affected by the degree of oxygen binding, hypoxic training could increase the protein expression of HIF-1 o?n muscular tissue and the increase could promote the genes transcription of VEGF and Flt-1.The mechanism of hypoxia responsive genes promoting the angiogenesis of hypoxic training muscular tissue was: hypoxic training could increase the protein of angiogenesis hypoxia responsive genes VEGF and Flt-1, and after VEGF protein was produced, it could secrete by autocrine or by paracrine, combine with Flt-1 receptor on the vascular endothelium cell membrane, and participate in the angiogenesis of muscular tissue. Hypoxia, training, and hypoxic training all could reduce the content of serum VEGF, meanwhile, the proteins of VEGF on muscular tissue increased and the Flt-1 receptors also increased. Therefore, ingestion and utilization of VEGF from circulation was increased on muscular tissue.Angiogenesis on muscular tissue could be performed by means of sprouting and no-sprouting, among which no-sprouting angiogenesis pattern, i.e. intussusceptive microvascular growth, was the major way, suggesting that muscular tissue could take faster and more economical angiogenesis pattern to satisfy the demands of energy and metabolization.

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Prog Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 May-Jun;52(6):525-33.
Is hypoxia training good for muscles and exercise performance?

Vogt M, Hoppeler H.
Department of Anatomy, University of Bern, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland. michael.vogt@ana.unibe.ch <michael.vogt@ana.unibe.ch>
Abstract

Altitude training has become very popular among athletes as a means to further increase exercise performance at sea level or to acclimatize to competition at altitude. Several approaches have evolved during the last few decades, with “live high-train low” and “live low-train high” being the most popular. This review focuses on functional, muscular, and practical aspects derived from extensive research on the “live low-train high” approach. According to this, subjects train in hypoxia but remain under normoxia for the rest of the time. It has been reasoned that exercising in hypoxia could increase the training stimulus. Hypoxia training studies published in the past have varied considerably in altitude (2300-5700 m) and training duration (10 days to 8 weeks) and the fitness of the subjects. The evidence from muscle structural, biochemical, and molecular findings point to a specific role of hypoxia in endurance training. However, based on the available performance capacity data such as maximal oxygen uptake (Vo(2)max) and (maximal) power output, hypoxia as a supplement to training is not consistently found to be advantageous for performance at sea level. Stronger evidence exists for benefits of hypoxic training on performance at altitude. “Live low-train high” may thus be considered when altitude acclimatization is not an option. In addition, the complex pattern of gene expression adaptations induced by supplemental training in hypoxia, but not normoxia, suggest that muscle tissue specifically responds to hypoxia. Whether and to what degree these gene expression changes translate into significant changes in protein concentrations that are ultimately responsible for observable structural or functional phenotypes remains open. It is conceivable that the global functional markers such as Vo(2)max and (maximal) power output are too coarse to detect more subtle changes that might still be functionally relevant, at least to high-level athletes.

Science Daily (May 5, 2010) — High altitude medicine is a “natural research laboratory” for the study of cardiovascular physiology and pathophysiology. As such, it can shed light on conditions and diseases that mimic the low oxygen content of the atmosphere at the top of mountains. Yves Allemann, MD, FESC, Swiss Cardiovascular Center, University Hospital, Bern, and Urs Scherrer, MD, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, Lausanne, have assembled an international group of leading authorities to contribute to a special issue of Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases dedicated to high-altitude medicine and novel insights into disease mechanisms provided by high-altitude research.

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Hypoxic training on good old

European researchers recently said that older men with lower oxygen if breathing the air a short time can increase aerobic capacity, and motor function, regardless of whether they are suffering from heart disease.

In the Study, Austria Plains Brook University researchers put 16 Interests Sports Of Elderly Men were randomly divided into two groups to participate in hypoxic and normal oxygen levels of exercise training. 8 of them in at least 8 weeks before the study began had had a heart attack. In the three-week course of respiratory training, training five times a week. Each training, the subjects received hypoxic training exercise when the air inhaled is oxygen, the rest through the normal air mask. The control group throughout the training process is normal inhaled air. At the beginning of the end of three days of training before and after the training exercise function test subjects.

Found that hypoxia caused the subjects RBC And hemoglobin levels decreased significantly, while the role of both is to help the blood to carry more oxygen. And according to heart rate and blood pressure changes in subjects, hypoxia training can increase their aerobic capacity and exercise tolerance. The researchers also found that, regardless of whether men with previous heart disease, hypoxia training can produce the same effect.

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