Fitness level impacts salivary antimicrobial protein responses to a single bout of cycling exercise KunzHawley BishopNicolette SpielmannGuillaume PistilloMira ReedJustin OgrajsekTeja ParkYoonjung MehtaSatish K. PiersonDuane L. SimpsonRichard J. 2015 Purpose: Salivary antimicrobial proteins (sAMPs) protect the upper respiratory tract (URTI) from invading microorganisms and have been linked with URTI infection risk in athletes. While high training volume is associated with increased URTI risk, it is not known if fitness affects the sAMP response to acute exercise. This study compared the sAMP responses to various exercising workloads of highly fit experienced cyclists with those who were less fit.