The Impact of the ACTN3 rs1815739 Polymorphism on Physical Performance in Youth Football Players
7 affiliations
- 1Department of Exercise and Sports Science, Lokman Hekim University, Ankara 06510, Türkiye
- 2Graduate School of Health Sciences, Ankara University, Ankara 06290, Türkiye
- 3Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Lopukhin Federal Research and Clinical Center of Physical Chemical Medicine of Federal Medical Biological Agency, 119435 Moscow, Russia
- 4Laboratory of Genetics of Aging and Longevity, Kazan State Medical University, 420111 Kazan, Russia
- 5Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool L3 5AF, UK
- 6Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Marmara University, Istanbul 34854, Türkiye
- 7Faculty of Physical Culture and Health, Tetova University, 1220 Tetova, North Macedonia
Abstract
This cross-sectional study examined ACTN3 rs1815739 (C/T; R577X) genotype distribution and its associations with physical performance and biological maturation in male youth football players. A total of 274 players (11–14 years, n = 166; 15–18 years, n = 108) from a professional club in North Macedonia completed Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery, linear sprint, and jump tests, including the drop jump, countermovement jump (CMJ), and squat jump (SJ). Genotype frequencies were compared with the 1000 Genomes European reference population (n = 503). ACTN3 CC (RR) genotype was more frequent in players than in the reference population (48.2% vs. 32.0%; OR = 1.97, 95% CI 1.46–2.67, p < 0.0001), as was the C (R) allele (OR = 1.34, 95% CI 1.08–1.66, p = 0.009). However, the player genotype distribution deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (p < 0.001). CMJ height increased by approximately 2.3 cm per one-year increase in maturity offset (p < 0.001). In the younger cohort, TT (XX) carriers had lower Yo-Yo distance and estimated VO2max than CC and CT (RX) carriers (p = 0.007). Exploratory whole-sample models provided limited evidence that the association between maturity offset, and vertical-jump performance (CMJ, SJ) might differ by genotype; however, these interactions were not statistically significant after correction for multiple testing. No significant genotype differences were observed for sprint performance or most other jump-related outcomes. These findings indicate that ACTN3–performance associations in youth football players are modest and outcome-specific and should be interpreted cautiously given the external reference population and deviation from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium.
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BibTeX
@article{cerit2026impact,
title = {{The Impact of the ACTN3 rs1815739 Polymorphism on Physical Performance in Youth Football Players}},
author = {Mesut Cerit and Aysberg Şamil Önlü and Ildus I. Ahmetov and Özlem Özge Yılmaz Hızarcı and Beste Tacal Aslan and Metin Dalip and Korkut Ulucan},
journal = {International Journal of Molecular Sciences},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/ijms27219429},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/27/21/9429},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The Impact of the ACTN3 rs1815739 Polymorphism on Physical Performance in Youth Football Players
AU - Mesut Cerit
AU - Aysberg Şamil Önlü
AU - Ildus I. Ahmetov
AU - Özlem Özge Yılmaz Hızarcı
AU - Beste Tacal Aslan
AU - Metin Dalip
AU - Korkut Ulucan
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/22
JO - International Journal of Molecular Sciences
DO - 10.3390/ijms27219429
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/27/21/9429
AB - This cross-sectional study examined ACTN3 rs1815739 (C/T; R577X) genotype distribution and its associations with physical performance and biological maturation in male youth football players. A total of 274 players (11–14 years, n = 166; 15–18 years, n = 108) from a professional club in North Macedonia completed Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery, linear sprint, and jump tests, including the drop jump, countermovement jump (CMJ), and squat jump (SJ). Genotype frequencies were compared with the 1000 Genomes European reference population (n = 503). ACTN3 CC (RR) genotype was more frequent in players than in the reference population (48.2% vs. 32.0%; OR = 1.97, 95% CI 1.46–2.67, p < 0.0001), as was the C (R) allele (OR = 1.34, 95% CI 1.08–1.66, p = 0.009). However, the player genotype distribution deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (p < 0.001). CMJ height increased by approximately 2.3 cm per one-year increase in maturity offset (p < 0.001). In the younger cohort, TT (XX) carriers had lower Yo-Yo distance and estimated VO2max than CC and CT (RX) carriers (p = 0.007). Exploratory whole-sample models provided limited evidence that the association between maturity offset, and vertical-jump performance (CMJ, SJ) might differ by genotype; however, these interactions were not statistically significant after correction for multiple testing. No significant genotype differences were observed for sprint performance or most other jump-related outcomes. These findings indicate that ACTN3–performance associations in youth football players are modest and outcome-specific and should be interpreted cautiously given the external reference population and deviation from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium.
SN - 1422-0067
ER -