PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Baumert, P. AU - Temple, S. AU - Stanley, J.M. AU - Cocks, M. AU - Strauss, J.A. AU - Shepherd, S.O. AU - Drust, B. AU - Lake, M.J. AU - Stewart, C.E. AU - Erskine, R.M. TI - Neuromuscular fatigue and recovery after strenuous exercise depends on skeletal muscle size and stem cell characteristics AID - 10.1101/740266 DP - 2020 Jan 01 TA - bioRxiv PG - 740266 4099 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/07/23/740266.short 4100 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/07/23/740266.full AB - Hamstring muscle injury is highly prevalent in sports involving repeated maximal sprinting. Although neuromuscular fatigue is thought to be a risk factor, the mechanisms underlying the fatigue response to repeated maximal sprints are unclear. Here, we show that repeated maximal sprints induce neuromuscular fatigue accompanied with a prolonged strength loss in hamstring muscles. The immediate hamstring strength loss was linked to both central and peripheral fatigue, while prolonged strength loss was associated with indicators of muscle damage. The kinematic changes immediately after sprinting likely protected fatigued hamstrings from excess elongation stress, while larger hamstring muscle physiological cross-sectional area and lower myoblast:fibroblast ratio appeared to protect against fatigue/damage and improve muscle recovery within the first 48 h after sprinting. We have therefore identified novel mechanisms that likely regulate the fatigue/damage response and initial recovery following repeated maximal sprinting in humans.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.