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This investigation determined the efficacy of a tart cherry juice in aiding recovery and reducing muscle damage, inflammation and oxidative stress. Twenty recreational Marathon runners assigned to either consumed cherry juice or placebo for 5 days before, the day of and for 48 h following a Marathon run. Markers of muscle damage (creatine kinase, lactate dehydrogenase, muscle soreness and isometric strength), inflammation [interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP) and uric acid], total antioxidant status (TAS) and oxidative stress [thiobarbituric acid reactive species (TBARS) and protein carbonyls] were examined before and following the race. Isometric strength recovered significantly faster ( P=0.024) in the cherry juice group. No other damage indices were significantly different. Inflammation was reduced in the cherry juice group (IL-6, P<0.001; CRP, P<0.01; uric acid, P<0.05). TAS was ∼10% greater in the cherry juice than the placebo group for all post-supplementation measures ( P<0.05). Protein carbonyls was not different; however, TBARS was lower in the cherry juice than the placebo at 48 h ( P<0.05). The cherry juice appears to provide a viable means to aid recovery following strenuous exercise by increasing total antioxidative capacity, reducing inflammation, lipid peroxidation and so aiding in the recovery of muscle function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about the 2010 annual Nutrition Society summer meeting held at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland is presented. The conference, which was organised by Doctor Dean Sewell and his team, was participated by more than 360 delegates. The four-day symposium featured several speakers including Susan Duthie, Elizabeth Lund and Katherine Pinnick.

The properties of smooth muscle are currently being studied extensively. Indeed, the small size of myocytes and the huge range of behaviours they exhibit make them an attractive focus for current research. However, this was not always the case. These properties initially made smooth muscles more difficult to study than the larger specialized striated muscles that were the focus of attention of leading researchers. In the UK, research into the physiology of smooth muscles began in the Pharmacology Department at Oxford, led by Edith Bülbring; her early results attracted much attention and resulted in the formation of an active international smooth muscle research group. Although several areas of current interest in the field of smooth muscle were not tackled by the Oxford group, progression of much of the field has clear links to Bülbring and her group. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]