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Inter-relationships between pituitary-adrenal hormones and catecholamines during a 6-day Nordic ski race

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Summary

The aim of the study was to investigate the inter-relationships between pituitary-adrenal hormones and catecholamines during a prolonged competition over 6 days. Plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), cortisol (C), β-endorphin (βEP), free and sulphated adrenaline (A) and noradrenaline (NA) were measured in 11 volunteer male subjects during a national Nordic-ski race (323 km). Blood samples were obtained before the competition in the evening as control (D0), and before and after each day's racing (D1–D6). The mean daily heart rate (f c) was calculated fromf c values recorded every minute during the race. The results showed the following: changes in meanf c [from 147 (SEM 3) to 156 (SEM 3) beats · min−1 according to the day] were not significant during the race. Diurnal variations in ACTH, βEP and C were no longer apparent after the race: evening levels were higher than their respective D0 values during the race, except on D3 when there was a lack of response to exercise in the three hormones. Unlike ACTH and βEP, pre- and postexercise C values on D1 and D2 were higher than those on the subsequent days (P<0.001). In contrast, there was a progressive accumulation of A and NA in pre-and postrace concentrations which reached a plateau in about 4 days. Positive correlations between exercise responses in ACTH, C and βEP were found especially on D3 and D6 (P<0.001) but there were no significant correlations between catecholamines and the other three hormones. Thus, prolonged competition over 6 days evoked different control mechanisms for hormones of the pituitary-adrenal axis and catecholamines. A sustained catecholamine release and sympathetic activation induced a progressive NA and A accumulation during the race. In contrast, the lack of a response to exercise in ACTH, βEP and C on D3 suggested a dissociated central command for pituitary axis hormones and sympathetic adrenal activation. On the following days, the response to a lack of exercise, in spite of ACTH stimulation, may have reflected an adaptation of adrenal glands to prolonged stress.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de Physiologie - Biologie du Sport, Faculté de Médecine, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France

    Nicole Fellmann, Mario Bedu, Gil Boudet, Martine Mage & Jean Coudert

  2. Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UA 1196 Catécholamines Laboratoire de Physiologie, Faculté de Médecine Grange-Blanche, 8 Avenue Rockefeller, F-69373, Lyon, France

    Marcel Sagnol, Jean-Marc Pequignot & Liliane Peyrin

  3. Centre de Médecine Nucléaire, Hôpital Neuro-Cardiologique, 59, Boulevard Pinel, F-69003, Lyon, France

    Bruno Claustrat & Jocelyne Brun

Authors
  1. Nicole Fellmann
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  2. Mario Bedu
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  3. Gil Boudet
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  4. Martine Mage
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  5. Marcel Sagnol
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  6. Jean-Marc Pequignot
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  7. Bruno Claustrat
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  8. Jocelyne Brun
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  9. Liliane Peyrin
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  10. Jean Coudert
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Fellmann, N., Bedu, M., Boudet, G. et al. Inter-relationships between pituitary-adrenal hormones and catecholamines during a 6-day Nordic ski race. Europ. J. Appl. Physiol. 64, 258–265 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00626289

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