Listening to Music during Warming-Up Counteracts the Negative Effects of Ramadan Observance on Short-Term Maximal Performance

Aim

The aim of the present study was to examine whether listening to music during warming-up might influence short-term maximal performance (STMP), cognitive anxiety, self-confidence, and enjoyment during Ramadan, and whether these affects might predict STMP.

Methods

Nine male physical education students (age: 21 ± 1.1 years; height: 1.8 ± 0.04 m; body mass: 83 ± 5 kg) volunteered to participate in the present study. A within-subjects design consisted of four experimental sessions: Two sessions occurred one week before Ramadan and two others took place during Ramadan. They were scheduled at 5 p.m. and were conducted as follows: After a 10-minute warm-up either with or without listening to music, each participant performed a 5-m multiple shuttle run test, after which he was asked to answer items intended to assess his affective state during the experimental task.

Results

Our findings revealed that STMP was lower during Ramadan than before Ramadan in the no-music condition. Additionally, it was found that STMP was higher in the music condition than in the no-music condition during Ramadan, and that STMP measured before Ramadan did not differ from that measured during Ramadan in the music condition. Regarding affects, the findings revealed that enjoyment was lower during Ramadan than before Ramadan in the music condition, and that cognitive anxiety was lower in the music condition than in the no-music condition before Ramadan. Self-confidence was not influenced by the experimental conditions.

Conclusion

This study showed that listening to music during warming-up not only would be beneficial for STMP in Ramadan fasters, but also would counteract the negative effects of Ramadan observance on STMP.     

A phylogenetic survey of myotubularin genes of eukaryotes: distribution,protein structure,evolution, and gene expression

Background  

Phosphorylated phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) lipids, produced and modified by PtdIns kinases and phosphatases, are critical to the regulation of diverse cellular functions. The myotubularin PtdIns-phosphate phosphatases have been well characterized in yeast and especially animals, where multiple isoforms, both catalytically active and inactive, occur. Myotubularin mutations bring about disruption of cellular membrane trafficking, and in humans, disease. Previous studies have suggested that myotubularins are widely distributed amongst eukaryotes, but key evolutionary questions concerning the origin of different myotubularin isoforms remain unanswered, and little is known about the function of these proteins in most organisms.     

Length–weight relationships of sharks in Antalya Bay,eastern Mediterranean

Length–weight relationships are presented for ten shark species caught in the demersal trawl fishery in the Antalya Bay, eastern Mediterranean.