Sport Research Centre Creates Healthy Conditions for Antarctic Expedition

As head of the Centre for Research and Applied Activity in Sport (CRAAS) at the Vassil Levski National Sports Academy in Sofia, biochemist Albena Alexandrova is in charge of creating healthy conditions for the members of the annual Bulgarian Antarctic Expedition and helping them stay active and functional throughout their mission.

Prof. Alexandrova is monitoring the multiple effects which the journey and the stay in Antarctica have on the members of the expedition. Her team is supposed to examine their physiological status before and after the journey, she told BTA in an interview.

Before the expedition, the participants were subjected to functional tests at the CRAAS using a stationary bicycle. Their heart and lung functions were checked, Alexandrova said. Blood samples were taken from them to conduct oxidative stress tests. Oxidative stress is a general cellular-level reaction of the body to the factors impacting it, she explained. She noted that a long journey, time zone change and being away from one's family can result in psychological pressure on the person concerned, which can influence the oxidative status of their blood.

A second round of tests is planned after the expedition members return to Bulgaria, to assess the effect of their stay in Antarctica. The results will be collated and conclusions will be drawn about how the whole group have gone through their stint on Antarctica's Livingston Island. They can be divided into subgroups based on gender, age and fitness level.

According to Alexandrova, the research project will contribute significantly to sport science, because athletes endure similar workloads. This can help create appropriate diets, food supplements and psychological techniques to enhance athletes' performance.

In-depth research can reveal the mechanisms of adaptation of the body to a given kind of strain, either physical workload or pressure from the environment, the scientist added.

Prof. Albena Alexandrova teaches biochemistry at the National Sports Academy. She also works at the Institute of Neurobiology with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.