Clinical Research Directory

Timing of Broccoli Sprout Intake to Improve Exercise Performance

This study examines how the timing of intake of a broccoli sprout-based drink (a natural source of isothiocyanates, ITCs) affects physiological responses, recovery, and performance after a standardized endurance cycling session. Healthy, endurance-trained adults (18-64 years) will complete four laboratory visits at the Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences (GIH): one screening/physiology test visit and three intervention visits in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over design. On intervention visits, participants will ingest either an active broccoli sprout drink (50 g sprouts) or a placebo drink based on alfalfa sprouts (50 g sprouts) according to randomization. The drink will be consumed either approximately 16 hours before exercise (the evening before) or approximately 3 hours before exercise (the morning of the test), enabling comparison of timing in relation to a standardized \~2-hour cycling protocol (individualized intensity) followed by a 10 km cycling time trial. Outcomes include measures of performance, heart rate, perceived exertion and recovery, blood glucose and lactate, and metabolic responses. Venous blood samples are collected at multiple time points before and after exercise and during the subsequent laboratory recovery period, and muscle biopsies are obtained at defined time points to assess muscle metabolism and recovery-related markers. Participants return \~24 hours after exercise for follow-up sampling after an overnight fast, including a glucose tolerance test

The Acute Effect of Different Resistance Exercise Loads on Irisin and Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor in Blood Serum and Plasma

The aim of this study is to investigate different resistance training loads on BNDF and irisin levels in platelets, blood serum and plasma.

Evaluating Non-Invasive Haptics During Extreme Exercise

This study aims to compare determinants of endurance performance between participants wearing an active patch with haptic vibrotactile trigger technology (VTT) versus a placebo patch without VTT among recreational to competitive runners over a 4-week training period.

Capacitive Resistive Electric Transfer Therapy on Muscle Recovery

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of Capacitive Resistive Electric Transfer (CRET) therapy combined with post-competition massage in the recovery and muscle function of professional athletes. It is designed as a randomized, double-blind, crossover clinical trial. The primary objective is to analyze the efficacy of this combined protocol in muscle recovery after performing the Wingate anaerobic power and capacity test. Secondary objectives include assessing changes in muscle fatigue, muscle function of the rectus femoris and vastus lateralis, physiological changes in blood lactate concentration and oxygen saturation, and intramuscular structural changes through ultrasound before and after the intervention. The study will recruit professional athletes from disciplines that require anaerobic muscle metabolism, such as cycling, athletics, triathlon, CrossFit, and duathlon. Participants must be federated athletes who train at least four times per week and actively compete at regional, national, or international levels. Exclusion criteria include recent sports injuries preventing test performance, prior exposure to CRET therapy, allergies to conductive gel, language barriers, participation in other research studies, or ongoing pharmacological treatment that could interfere with measurements. Participants will attend four study sessions, divided into two sets of two consecutive days. On the first day, they will perform the Wingate test followed by the assigned post-competition massage with either CRET therapy or a placebo intervention. On the second day, they will repeat the Wingate test. After a three-week washout period, participants will switch to the opposite group. The intervention group will receive a 60-minute CRET therapy session with both resistive and capacitive modes applied at different power intensities, combined with a standardized recovery massage. The placebo group will receive the same massage while undergoing a simulated CRET therapy, with the machine turned on but without power application to prevent participant awareness of the placebo condition. The study will analyze various dependent variables, including Wingate test performance, blood lactate levels, subjective fatigue perception using the modified Borg scale, muscle stiffness and tone through myotonometry, muscle oxygen saturation via near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), cross-sectional muscle area and grayscale values from ultrasound imaging, body composition using a Tanita analyzer, maximum isometric quadriceps strength via handheld dynamometry, and muscle activity measured by surface electromyography (sEMG). Each of these variables will be assessed at specific time points before, during, and after the intervention. The estimated sample size is approximately 50 subjects, with 25 participants per group, determined through a preliminary pilot study. Statistical analyses will be conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics 26.0. Descriptive statistics will be calculated for quantitative and qualitative variables. A linear mixed model will be applied to compare changes between and within groups over five measurement periods using a one-way mixed ANOVA. If the sphericity assumption is violated, the Greenhouse-Geisser correction will be applied. Statistically significant effects will undergo post-hoc analysis with Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. All originally enrolled participants will be included in the final analysis following an intention-to-treat approach, and effect sizes will be calculated using eta squared. The significance level will be set at p \< 0.05.

Exercise-Induced Lactate and Cognitive Function (ExLBC)

A single bout of exercise can rapidly improve cognitive functions including memory, attention, and executive functions, which help us navigate through everyday life. However, we do not fully understand the mechanism behind this process. A promising candidate mechanism is lactate, which was previously considered merely a waste product of our muscles during exercise. It is now recognized as an important molecule that is used by the brain as an energy source. Studies have shown that increases in lactate during exercise are positively related to improved cognitive function after completion of exercise. Another potential mechanism involves the increase in neurotrophins such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) following exercise. The increase in lactate and BDNF during exercise may be connected to cause these cognitive improvements. However, because lactate increases with higher exercise intensities, we currently do not know how lactate specifically impacts brain health. To address this, muscle and blood lactate concentrations can be experimentally manipulated during exercise using sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) supplementation and will allow us to explore how lactate specifically affects brain function. The purpose of this project is to investigate the effect of exercise-induced lactate on BDNF and cognition following oral NaHCO3 supplementation in young adults. We hypothesize that BDNF levels will be higher, and cognition will be improved in executive function, visuospatial memory, and working memory in the NaHCO3 condition due to higher plasma lactate during exercise compared to placebo.

Preventive Therapy of Postoperative Intra-abdominal Infection Based on Serum Lactate Changes

Intra-abdominal infection is one of the most serious complications after pancreatic resection. The preventive use of antibiotics intraoperatively could reduce the incidence rate of postoperative intra-abdominal infection. According to the previous retrospective study, changes of serum lactate level on postoperative day1 could predict the incidence rate of postoperative intra-abdominal infection. This prospective RCT is to further validate and promote the findings and conclusion.