A physiological profile approach to animal temperament: How to understand the functional significance of individual differences in behaviour

Animal behaviour research has experienced a renewed interest in consistent individual differences (i.e. animal personality or temperament). Recent ecological studies have identified environmental conditions that give rise to the development and evolution of temperaments and to fitness-related outcomes of temperament. Additional literature has also described relationships between temperaments and physiological regulation. However, one-to-one relationships between one behavioural trait and one physiological system do not account for co-selection of behavioural and physiological traits, nor the complex signalling among physiological systems. In the current paper, we review the literature on multiple physiological processes associated with temperament, propose temperament-specific physiological profiles, and focus on next steps to understand the functional significance, evolution and maintenance of temperaments. We propose that to understand causes and consequences of temperament we need to characterize integrative physiological profiles associated with different temperaments.

The Physiological Profile of Male Professional Soccer Players: The Effect of Playing Division

The purpose of this study was to present the physiological profile of male soccer players who compete in the professional (Division [D] 1, 2, 3) and semi-professional (D4) Greek soccer leagues, and to compare their physiological profile according to playing division. Using 1,095 players (age: 25.2 ± 4.7 years), twelve anthropometric and physiological characteristics (age, height, body mass, BMI, VO2max, velocity of VO2max velocity at ventilatory threshold, maximum heart rate, maximum lactate, squat jump, 35 m sprint and sprinting fatigue index) were assessed. Factorial analysis of variance revealed a significantly (p < 0.05) enhanced physiological profile amongst the professional, compared to semi-professional players, for 10 of the 12 characteristics assessed between divisions. Regarding aerobic parameters, velocity at maximum oxygen uptake was the variable which discriminated professional, from semi-professional players most. With reference to anaerobic parameters, the 35m sprint was the variable which differentiated players between divisions (i.e. D1/D2 vs. D3/D4). Overall, findings in this study present the physiological profile of soccer players within the specified Greek soccer divisions, with differences identified between professional, and semi-professional divisions. These findings suggest that advanced physiological profiles may contribute to a player’s progression to higher divisions of Greek professional soccer.

Performance Profile among Age Categories in Young Cyclists

Endurance profile assessment is of major interest to evaluate the cyclist’s performance potential. In this regard, maximal oxygen uptake and functional threshold power are useful functional parameters to determine metabolic training zones (ventilatory threshold). The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the physiological profile of different road cyclist age categories (Youth, Junior, and Under-23) to obtain the performance requirements. Sixty-one competitive road cyclists (15–22 years) performed a maximal incremental test on a bike in order to determine functional parameters (maximal fat oxidation zone, ventilatory thresholds, maximal oxygen uptake, and functional threshold power) and metabolic training zones. The results suggest major differences, with the Youth group showing clear changes in all metabolic zones except in fat oxidation. The main differences between Under-23 vs. Junior groups were observed in maximal relative power output (Under-23: 6.70 W·Kg−1; Junior: 6.17 W·Kg−1) and relative functional threshold power (Under-23: 4.91 W·Kg−1; Junior: 4.48 W·Kg−1). The Youth group physiological profile is clearly different to the other age categories. Some parameters normalized to body weight (maximal oxygen consumption, load and functional threshold power) could be interesting to predict a sporting career during the Junior and Under-23 stages.

Physiological Profile, Metabolic Response, and Temporal Structure in Elite Individual Table Tennis: Differences According to Gender

No research that has analyzed the structural characteristics, physiological profile, and energy demands in the game of table tennis as played by women is available. The present study aimed to evaluate the physiological, metabolic, and temporal variables of table tennis players and to observe gender differences. Forty-eight elite table tennis players participated in this study: 24 men (25.3 ± 4.07 years) and 24 women (22.3 ± 3.8 years). During simulated competition, temporal structure, heart rate (HR), and lactate (LA) were evaluated. The maximum ergospirometric evaluations were performed in a laboratory. The total table tennis (TT) time and the total resting time (TRT) were longer for men (p < 0.05), but game density was higher for women (p < 0.05). During rallies, the real playing time (RPT) was longer for women, while the TRT was longer for men (p < 0.05). The maximum HR, minimum HR, and maximum LA concentrations were higher for men (p < 0.05). The obtained data reveal gender differences in the physiological, metabolic, structural, and temporal variables in table tennis players. The analysis of the studied variables could allow training sessions to be planned and organized according to table tennis players’ gender.

Fermented medicinal herbs improve hematological and physiological profile of Striped catfish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus)

This study sought to determine the effect of fermented medicinal herbs (FMH), i.e. cutchery (Kaempferia galanga), turmeric (Curcuma longa) and curcuma (Curcuma xanthorrhiza) in combination with molasses and probiotic drink (Yakult), administered orally on the hematological and physiological profile of striped catfish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus). A complete randomized design (CRD) experiment was used with four levels of treatments, namely P0 (control), P1 (FMH 100 mL/kg), P2 (FMH 200 mL/kg) and P3 (FMH 300 mL/kg) of feed. The fish were kept in a farm in cages at 75 fish/m3 and fed with the experimental diets for 60 days. The results revealed that FMH (P2) dietary administration improved hematological and physiological profile of catfish, i.e total erythrocytes of 2.81 x 106 cells/mm3, hematocrit values of 39.00%, hemoglobin levels of 10.73 g/dL, total leukocytes of 11.41 x 104 cells/mm3, blood glucose 97.33 mg/dL, and total serum protein 4.10 mg/dL compared to controls with 1.89 x 106 cells/mm3, 32.33 %, g/dL, 9.67 x 104 cells/mm3, 67.33 mg/dL, and total serum protein of 3.10 mg/dL, respectively. Moreover, the diet improved special growth rate, feed conversion ratio, feed efficiency and the survival rate of catfish. The hematological and physiological profile of catfish improvement are considered to be due to the content of secondary metabolites of FMH, namely curcuminoids, vitamin C, essential oils, tannins, and flavonoids, which trigger immunostimulation. The presence of curcuminoids provide an antioxidant effect on cell membranes reducing erythrocyte cell membrane damage due to oxidation. Similarly, flavonoids are natural antioxidants, which are credited with the ability of reducing free radicals and anti-free radicals.

Effect of Late Upward Tapping on the Productivity of the Metabolically Active Hevea brasiliensis Clone PB 260 in Southwestern Cote d'Ivoire

In order to evaluate the improvement of rubber productivity of rubber trees by late upward tapping. A study was conducted at SCASO (Société Civile Agricole du Sud-Ouest) on the PB 260 clone of the active metabolic class. The experimental set-up is a Fisher block design with eight treatments and three replications. The treatments compared were bled in reverse in the eleventh year of harvest, in quarter spiral every 3, 4, 5 and 6 days, with stimulation frequencies of 6, 8, 10, 12 and 13 times a year. The parameters measured were rubber production, isodiametric growth, sensitivity to dry notching of trees and physiological profile. The results show that the different latex harvesting technologies improve the rubber productivity of PB 260 (5469 kg.ha-1.yr-1) with a low dry-nut rate (1.2%) and satisfactory radial vegetative growth (3.9cm.yr-1). The physiological profile of the trees is balanced, but the treatments significantly influenced the different parameters except sucrose. Trees bled in S/4U d3 gave better results due to their high yield with an acceptable dry notch rate. Late reverse tapping is therefore a good latex harvesting technology for improving rubber productivity after down tapping.

A Learn-to-Rank Approach for Predicting Road Cycling Race Outcomes

Professional road cycling is a very competitive sport, and many factors influence the outcome of the race. These factors can be internal (e.g., psychological preparedness, physiological profile of the rider, and the preparedness or fitness of the rider) or external (e.g., the weather or strategy of the team) to the rider, or even completely unpredictable (e.g., crashes or mechanical failure). This variety makes perfectly predicting the outcome of a certain race an impossible task and the sport even more interesting. Nonetheless, before each race, journalists, ex-pro cyclists, websites and cycling fans try to predict the possible top 3, 5, or 10 riders. In this article, we use easily accessible data on road cycling from the past 20 years and the Machine Learning technique Learn-to-Rank (LtR) to predict the top 10 contenders for 1-day road cycling races. We accomplish this by mapping a relevancy weight to the finishing place in the first 10 positions. We assess the performance of this approach on 2018, 2019, and 2021 editions of six spring classic 1-day races. In the end, we compare the output of the framework with a mass fan prediction on the Normalized Discounted Cumulative Gain (NDCG) metric and the number of correct top 10 guesses. We found that our model, on average, has slightly higher performance on both metrics than the mass fan prediction. We also analyze which variables of our model have the most influence on the prediction of each race. This approach can give interesting insights to fans before a race but can also be helpful to sports coaches to predict how a rider might perform compared to other riders outside of the team.

Analysis of Bacterial Community level Physiological Profiling on the Fermentation of Traditional Pliek u using BIOLOG EcoPlates

Pliek u is an Acehnese traditional condiment made from fermented coconut (Cocos nucifera) endosperm. The traditional pliek u fermentation process typically involves a diverse bacterial community. This research aimed to discover the physiological profile of the bacterial community diversity in pliek u fermentation. BIOLOGTM EcoPlates was used to obtain the physiological functions of the bacterial community during the pliek u fermentation process. The bacteria were then isolated from EcoPlate substrate to determine the predominant microorganism. Results from the analysis showed that the value of the Average Well Colour Development (AWCD) increased during the EcoPlates incubation period. The AWCD values in sample IV were higher than the AWCD values in samples I, II, and III. PCA analysis showed that the use of EcoPlate substrate by the bacterial community at the beginning of the fermentation was correlated with the substrate groups of carbohydrate and polymer, and with the substrate groups of carbohydrate and the amino acid at the end of the fermentation. The phylogenetic analysis showed that EC1 had a close relation with Pseudomonas azotoformans strain NBRC, while EC3 had a close relation with Psedomonas lundensis strain ATCC 49968. In conclusion, there were changes in the use of EcoPlate substrate and the activities of the bacterial community during the pliek u fermentation process.