It is part of a larger research effort aimed at exploring the human genome and understanding the genetic basis of athletic performance. In this study, elite endurance athletes were found to be more likely to have certain variations in the NRF2 gene than sprinters. Non-elite endurance athletes also showed a tendency towards the genetic variation, but the difference wasn’t as great.
The NRF2 gene is of interest to investigators because in previous studies it has been shown to help produce new mitochondria, a key energy-producing structure in cells, as well as reduce the harmful effects of oxidation and inflammation.
The study focused on a genetic analysis of155 nationally or internationally competitive track and field athletes. They were divided into an endurance group and a sprinter group, as well as a control group of healthy non-athletes. These groups were further divided into elite athletes who had competed at the world level, and non-elite who had competed at the national level.
The results of the analysis showed that two variations of the NRF2 gene, specifically the NRF2 C/T genotype and the NRF2A allele, were found more often in endurance athletes than in sprinters.
"Eighty percent of the elite-level endurance athletes were carrying the A allele of the NRF2 A/C single nucleotide protein, compared to only 46% of the elite-level sprinters,” said the study’s lead author, Nir Eynon of Wingate Institute in Israel. The variations were also found more frequently in the endurance athletes than in the sprinter or control groups.
Dr. Eynon also noted, "These findings suggest that harbouring this specific genotype might increase the probability of being an endurance athlete."
The study, while highly interesting to exercise physiologists, was not able to show a cause and effect relationship between the genetic variation and endurance, only an association. More research is needed to elucidate the role the NRF2 gene plays in athletic achievement and performance.
