Date of Award

Spring 2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts with University Honors

Department/Program

Biological Sciences

Advisor

Hamill, Danielle

Additional Advisor(s)

Busch, Andrew; Modica, Christopher

Keywords

health and human kinetics, psychology, youth sports, genetic testing, injury prevention, overuse injuries, genetics, athletics

Abstract

Each year in the United States, the number of children participating in organized sports decreases. Children may drop out of sports for numerous reasons, including overuse injuries. Genetic testing may help reduce the number of overuse injuries and improve the retention rate of children in sports. The previously thought nature versus nurture debate is now considered outdated as the birthplace effect (BPE), deliberate practice, and possibly genes (ACTN3 and IGF), all play a role in athletic performance. Common overuse injuries (hamstring injuries, tendinopathies, and Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) tears) in children are presented, as well as five potential genes to test for with potential association to overuse injuries. The ACTN3 R577X polymorphism is discussed for possible testing regarding muscle fatigue and injury severity. The IGF-2 single nucleotide G/C polymorphism is discussed regarding injury recovery time. A G/T polymorphism affecting the alpha chain of type I collagen was introduced concerning ligament and tendon strength and injuries. A GT dinucleotide repeat polymorphism of varying lengths is discussed for potential association with Achilles tendon injuries. Lastly, two polymorphisms (FokI and BsmI) of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) are examined with potential association to bone mineral density and stress fractures.

Comments

Secondary departments: HHK, Psychology

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

Download

Share

COinS
 
 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.