Ji-Suk Chang

Background/Objectives: Female soccer players differ from males in body composition, muscular strength, and hormonal fluctuations, which may influence performance, fatigue, recovery, and injury risk. This study aimed to characterize the time course of urinary metabolic perturbation and its persistence during a 20-day winter training season (WTS) using urinary metabolomics. Methods: Urinary metabolites in female soccer players were analyzed before (Bef) and 1 (After_1D) and 7 days after completion (After_7D) of the 20-day WTS using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy combined with multivariate analysis. Results: A total of 84 metabolites were identified in urine samples, and distinct group separation was observed by partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) in targeted profiling. Among these, 13 metabolites, including adenine, alanine, citrate, creatine, creatine phosphate (PCr), formate, glutamine, glycine, malonate, mannitol, taurine, trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), and urea, showed significant changes in the three groups (Bef, After_1D and After_7D). Conclusions: Of the identified metabolites, six metabolites—alanine, PCr, formate, glutamine, glycine, and malonate—were significantly increased at 1 day post-WTS (After_1D) compared with pre-WTS (Bef) levels. These metabolites were lower at 7 days post-WTS (After_7D) than at 1 day post-WTS (After_1D). However, the metabolic profile had not fully returned to pre-WTS levels by day 7, suggesting that recovery following WTS may require longer than at least 7 days after a 20-day WTS.

Background/Objectives: Female soccer players differ from males in body composition, muscular strength, and hormonal fluctuations, which may influence performance, fatigue, recovery, and injury risk. This study aimed to characterize metabolic changes following a winter training season (WTS) and estimate an appropriate recovery period using urinary metabolomics. Methods: Urinary metabolites in female soccer players were analyzed before, and after 1 and 7 days of WTS using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy combined with multivariate analysis. Results: A total of 84 metabolites were identified in urine samples, and distinct group separation was observed by partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) in targeted profiling. Among these, 13 metabolites, including adenine, alanine, citrate, creatine, creatine phosphate (PCr), formate, glutamine, glycine, malonate, mannitol, taurine, trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), and urea, showed significant changes relative to pre-WTS. Conclusions: Of the identified metabolites, seven metabolites showed significant alterations at 1 day post-WTS and tended to recover toward baseline levels by day 7. Alanine, PCr, formate, glutamine, glycine, and malonate showed decreased levels, whereas taurine exhibited the opposite trend. Although these metabolites tended to recover toward baseline by day 7, complete metabolic recovery was not observed, suggesting that recovery following WTS may require longer than 7 days.

PURPOSE: Physical activity induces metabolic changes in the body. However, the biological mechanisms underlying these metabolic changes remain unclear. Metabolomics has advanced the field of exercise science, although most studies use invasive procedures for sample collection and have low rates of participant compliance.METHODS: A systematic literature search was conducted between March 30 and April 5, 2024, to identify articles published between January 1, 2004 and January 1, 2024, across four academic databases: Web of Science, Google Scholar, PubMed, and Scopus.RESULTS: This review analyzed 34 original research articles on urinary metabolomics in exercise science. NMR and mass spectrometry platforms were used in similar proportions of the studies, accounting for 41.2% (14/34) and 35.3% (12/34) of the studies, respectively. Untargeted approaches dominated research, accounting for 85.3% of studies (n=29), whereas targeted methodologies were exclusively used in only 14.7% (n=5).CONCLUSIONS: Urinary metabolomics is rapidly emerging as a valuable tool in the field of exercise science. Untargeted approaches have mainly been used owing to their capability to capture exercise-induced metabolic responses comprehensively. Advancements in analytical technologies are expected to accelerate multi-omics integration, enabling precise characterization of physiological adaptations and supporting personalized strategies for health and performance enhancement.

Studies related to facial soft tissue thickness (FSTT) have been conducted since the late 19th century. Soft tissue is any tissue in the body that is not hardened by ossification or calcification processes, such as bones and teeth; and varies according to sex, age, race, and nutritional status. Forensically, soft tissue thickness plays an important role in cases where a cadaver has no unique characteristics; and the remains cannot be identified through DNA analysis, fingerprints, or examination of dental records. Therefore, the results of the current study suggest that the average thickness of the three skeletal classes (i.e., straight, concave, and convex) should be used for face restoration and forensic art research. It is thought that the current study’s results will be invaluable in the fields of forensic science, forensic art, anthropology, and dentistry. As a result, gender differences were observed in all classes, and the facial tissue thickness in Korean adults differed according to gender and occlusion type.