Researchers have found that there may be a correlation between physical activity, executive function, and depression for college students with depression. However, there is limited information available regarding the relationship and interaction between subclinical depression, physical activity, and executive function among college students with subclinical depression. The purpose of this study is to assess the correlation and interaction between subclinical depression, physical activity, and executive function in female college students with subclinical depression. The ActiGraph GT3X was utilized to measure physical activity time, and the colour-word Stroop task was employed to evaluate the executive function of the participants. The findings revealed that female college students with subclinical depression had a significantly lower time for moderate-intensity physical activity compared to healthy female college students. Additionally, the subclinical depression group took significantly longer to complete the colour-word Stroop task compared to the healthy group of female college students. The results of correlation and mediation analyses suggest a negative correlation between BDI-II scores and physical activity time and executive function in female college students with subclinical depression. Moreover, executive function appears to play a partial mediating role in the relationship between physical activity and subclinical depression.

Background: This study aimed to examine the efficacy of multidomain interventions compared to control and nutritional interventions in older adults with subjective cognitive decline (SCD). Four databases were searched for relevant literature. Methodology: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases were searched for relevant studies. Randomized controlled trials that examined the effects of multidomain interventions on cognitive and physical function in older adults with SCD were included. Results: This study included six eligible studies with 1,767 participants. The results indicated that multidomain interventions significantly improved executive function and memory but did not significantly impact global cognition and physical performance compared to the control group. In addition, significant enhancements were observed in executive function and memory when compared to single nutritional interventions. Conclusions: The findings revealed that multidomain interventions could effectively improve executive function and memory in older adults with SCD. Further studies with robust designs, particularly those comparing single-domain interventions, are needed to investigate the effects and underlying mechanisms.

Insufficient sleep causes muscle fatigue, impacting performance. The mechanism of brain–muscle signaling remains uncertain. In this study, we examined the impact of sleep deprivation on muscle endurance during isometric contractions and explored the changes in brain–muscle connectivity. Methods: The research involved 35 right-handed male participants who took part in an exercise test that included isometric contractions of the left and right biceps in both sleep-deprived and well-rested states. Muscle contraction duration and electroencephalogram (EEG) and electromyography (EMG) signals were recorded. Functional connectivity between brain regions was assessed using the phase locking value (PLV), while partial directed coherence (PDC) was used to analyze signal directionality between motor centers and muscles. Results: The connectivity strength between Brodmann areas (BAs) 1-5 and the right BA6, 8 regions was significantly decreased in the isometric contractions after sleep deprivation. Insufficient sleep enhanced the PDC signals from the motor center of the right brain to the left biceps, and it decreased the PDC signals from both biceps to their opposite motor centers. Conclusions: Sleep deprivation shortened muscle isometric contraction duration by affecting the interaction between the somatosensory motor cortex and the right premotor cortex, reducing biceps feedback signal connectivity to the contralateral motor center in the brain.

Although exercise training has been shown to enhance neurological function, there is a shortage of research on how exercise training affects the temporal-spatial synchronization properties of functional networks, which are crucial to the neurological system. This study recruited 23 professional and 24 amateur dragon boat racers to perform simulated paddling on ergometers while recording EEG. The spatiotemporal dynamics of the brain were analyzed using microstates and omega complexity. Temporal dynamics results showed that microstate D, which is associated with attentional networks, appeared significantly altered, with significantly higher duration, occurrence, and coverage in the professional group than in the amateur group. The transition probabilities of microstate D exhibited a similar pattern. The spatial dynamics results showed the professional group had lower brain complexity than the amateur group, with a significant decrease in omega complexity in the α (8–12 Hz) and β (13–30 Hz) bands. Dragon boat training may strengthen the attentive network and reduce the complexity of the brain. This study provides evidence that dragon boat exercise improves the efficiency of the cerebral functional networks on a spatiotemporal scale.

Nighttime sports participation has become a flexible option for individuals with limited daytime exercise opportunities, yet continued participation may depend on environmental, social, and psychological factors. Guided by social ecology theory (SET) and expectation confirmation theory (ECT), this study examined the associations of environmental appraisal (EA) and social support (SS) with intention to participate (ITP) in nighttime sports through perceived benefits (PB), degree of confirmation (DC), and satisfaction level (SL), while also considering the role of expectation (EX). A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in seven provinces and municipalities in China in December 2024. A total of 4032 valid responses were analyzed. Structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model, and indirect pathways were examined using bias-corrected bootstrapping with 5000 resamples. EA and SS were significantly associated with PB. PB, EX, EA, and SS were significantly associated with DC. DC was significantly associated with SL, and SL was significantly associated with ITP. Bootstrap analyses further supported the serial indirect pathways linking EA and SS to ITP through PB, DC, and SL. EA and SS were statistically associated with ITP in nighttime sports through PB, DC, and SL. These findings support a contextual-cognitive-affective pathway and suggest that continued nighttime sports participation is related not only to external environmental and social resources, but also to individuals' cognitive evaluation and satisfaction with their participation experiences.