Uric Acid and Cortisol Levels in Plasma Correlate with Pre-Competition Anxiety in Novice Athletes of Combat Sports

Author(s)

Garcia de Oliveira, Luis Fernando ; Souza-Junior, Tacito Pessoa ; Fechio, Juliane Jellmayer ; Fernandes Gomes-Santos, Jose Alberto ; Sampaio, Ricardo Camoes ; Vardaris, Cristina Vasconcelos ; Lambertucci, Rafael Herling ; de Barros, Marcelo Paes

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BRAIN SCIENCES; v. 12, n. 6, p. 13-pg., 2022-06-01.

Abstract

Pre-competition anxiety is very prevalent in novice athletes, causing stress and drastic decreases in their performances. Cortisol plays a central role in the psychosomatic responses to stress and also in the physiology of strenuous exercise. Growing evidence links uric acid, an endogenous antioxidant, with oxidative stress and anxiety, as observed in many depressive-related disorders. We here compared anxiety inventory scores (BAI and CSAI-2), cortisol and biomarkers of oxidative stress in the plasma of novice combat athletes (white and blue belts) before and after their first official national competition, when levels of stress are presumably high. Although the novice fighters did not reveal high indexes of anxiety on questionnaires, significant correlations were confirmed between cortisol and cognitive anxiety (Pearson's r = 0.766, p-value = 0.002, and a 'strong' Bayesian inference; BF10 = 22.17) and between pre-post changes of plasmatic uric acid and somatic anxiety (r = 0.804, p < 0.001, and 'very strong' inference; BF10 = 46.52). To our knowledge, this is the first study to report such strong correlations between uric acid and pre-competition anxiety in novice combat athletes. The cause-consequence association between these indexes cannot be directly inferred here, although the interplay between uric acid and anxiety deserves further investigation. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 19/02347-4 - Influence of melatonin supplementation associated to body mass management strategies (combined training and/or diet manipulation) on cardiac system of obese rats: study of alterations of cell death, redox state, inflammation, autophagy and metabolism
• Grantee: Rafael Herling Lambertucci
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 17/06032-2 - Biochemical, physiological and transcriptomic strategies to study the relationship between carotenoids, oxidative stress and Citrus fruit quality
• Grantee: Marcelo Paes de Barros
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research