Dylan Holly, M.Ed.Skeletal muscle is a complex and dynamic tissue that can adapt to mechanical stress or lack thereof. Muscle is not only responsible for human movement in a three dimensional world but is also a major storehouse for amino acids and metabolic machinery. When subjected to an unloaded state typically seen in a bedrest, casted, or microgravity situation the muscle atrophies, or in other words wastes away. Along with this wasting comes a decrease in muscular strength and enduran...

Majid Koozehchian, M.S. In our bodies, oxygen constantly produces toxic substances called reactive oxygen species (ROS), also known as oxidants. Antioxidants, biomolecules that combat oxidant damage, are produced by the body and can also be taken in supplement form. Disruption of normal cellular function by ROS is termed oxidative stress, and can be considered an imbalance between ROS production and the body’s production of antioxidants, weighted on the oxidant side (Fig.1). Low level...