Background: The ACTN3 gene may influence performance in team sports, in which sprint action and high-speed\nmovements, regulated by the anaerobic energy system, are crucial to the ultimate success of a match. The aim of\nthis study was to determine the association between the ACTN3 R577X (rs1815739) polymorphism and elite team\nsport athletic status in Italian male athletes.\nMethods: We compared the genotype and allele frequency of the ACTN3 R577X polymorphism between team\nsport athletes (n = 75), endurance athletes (n = 40), sprint/power athletes (n = 64), and non-athletic healthy controls\n(n = 192) from Italy. Genomic DNA was collected using a buccal swab. Extraction was performed according to the\nmanufacturer�s directions provided with a commercially available kit (Qiagen S.r.l., Milan, Italy).\nResults: Team sport athletes showed a lower frequency of the 577RR genotype compared to the 577XX genotype\nthan sprint/power athletes (p = 0.044). However, the ACTN3 R577X polymorphism was not associated with team\nsport athletic status compared to endurance athletes and non-athletic controls.\nConclusions: Our results agree with a recent large-scale study involving athletes from Spain, Poland, and Russia.\nThe ACTN3 R577X polymorphism was not associated with team sport athletic status compared to endurance\nathletes and non-athletic controls.
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