Plasma cytokine responses to resistance exercise with different nutrient availability on a concurrent exercise day in trained healthy males

The effect of a combined lifestyle intervention with and without protein drink on inflammation in older adults with obesity and type 2 diabetes

BACKGROUND

Chronic low-grade inflammatory profile (CLIP) is one of the pathways involved in type 2 diabetes (T2D). Currently, there is limited evidence for ameliorating effects of combined lifestyle interventions on CLIP in type 2 diabetes. We investigated whether a 13-week combined lifestyle intervention, using hypocaloric diet and resistance exercise plus high-intensity interval training with or without consumption of a protein drink, affected CLIP in older adults with T2D.

METHODS

In this post-hoc analysis of the PROBE study 114 adults (≥55 years) with obesity and type 2 (pre-)diabetes had measurements of C-reactive protein (CRP), pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-6, tumor-necrosis-factor (TNF)-α, and monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1, anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-10, IL-1 receptor antagonist (RA), and soluble tumor-necrosis-factor receptor (sTNFR)1, adipokines leptin and adiponectin, and glycation biomarkers carboxymethyl-lysine (CML) and soluble receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE) from fasting blood samples. A linear mixed model was used to evaluate change in inflammatory biomarkers after lifestyle intervention and effect of the protein drink. Linear regression analysis was performed with parameters of body composition (by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry) and parameters of insulin resistance (by oral glucose tolerance test).

RESULTS

There were no significant differences in CLIP responses between the protein and the control groups. For all participants combined, IL-1RA, leptin and adiponectin decreased after 13 weeks (p = 0.002, p < 0.001 and p < 0.001), while ratios TNF-α/IL-10 and TNF-α/IL-1RA increased (p = 0.003 and p = 0.035). CRP increased by 12 % in participants with low to average CLIP (pre 1.91 ± 0.39 mg/L, post 2.13 ± 1.16 mg/L, p = 0.006) and decreased by 36 % in those with high CLIP (pre 5.14 mg/L ± 1.20, post 3.30 ± 2.29 mg/L, p < 0.001). Change in leptin and IL-1RA was positively associated with change in fat mass (β = 0.133, p < 0.001; β = 0.017, p < 0.001) and insulin resistance (β = 0.095, p = 0.024; β = 0.020, p = 0.001). Change in lean mass was not associated with any of the biomarkers.

CONCLUSION

13 weeks of combined lifestyle intervention, either with or without protein drink, reduced circulating adipokines and anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-1RA, and increased inflammatory ratios TNF-α/IL-10 and TNF-α/IL-1RA in older adults with obesity and T2D. Effect on CLIP was inversely related to baseline inflammatory status.

The Role of Organokines in Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes and Their Functions as Molecular Transducers of Nutrition and Exercise

Maintaining systemic homeostasis requires the coordination of different organs and tissues in the body. Our bodies rely on complex inter-organ communications to adapt to perturbations or changes in metabolic homeostasis. Consequently, the liver, muscle, and adipose tissues produce and secrete specific organokines such as hepatokines, myokines, and adipokines in response to nutritional and environmental stimuli. Emerging evidence suggests that dysregulation of the interplay of organokines between organs is associated with the pathophysiology of obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Strategies aimed at remodeling organokines may be effective therapeutic interventions. Diet modification and exercise have been established as the first-line therapeutic intervention to prevent or treat metabolic diseases. This review summarizes the current knowledge on organokines secreted by the liver, muscle, and adipose tissues in obesity and T2D. Additionally, we highlighted the effects of diet/nutrition and exercise on the remodeling of organokines in obesity and T2D. Specifically, we investigated the ameliorative effects of caloric restriction, selective nutrients including ω3 PUFAs, selenium, vitamins, and metabolites of vitamins, and acute/chronic exercise on the dysregulation of organokines in obesity and T2D. Finally, this study dissected the underlying molecular mechanisms by which nutrition and exercise regulate the expression and secretion of organokines in specific tissues.

The effects of ageing, BMI and physical activity on blood IL-15 levels: A systematic review and meta-analyses

AIM

The purpose of the study was to test the effect of ageing, BMI, physical activity and chronic exercise on IL-15 blood concentration by meta-analyses of the literature.

METHODS

The search was performed on PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, ProQuest, Embase and Cochrane databases. First meta-analysis compared blood IL-15 of healthy adults across three age groups (<35 years, 35-65 years, and >65 years), considering BMI as confounding factor; the second compared IL-15 levels between physically active and non-physically active individuals (cross-sectional studies); and the third tested the effect of chronic exercise interventions on blood IL-15 levels on participants of any age, sex, and health condition.

RESULTS

From 2582 studies retrieved, 67 were selected for the three meta-analyses (age effect: 59; physical activity cross-sectional effect: 5; chronic exercise effect: 14). Older adults had lower blood IL-15 than young and middle-aged adults (5.30 pg/ml [4.76; 5.83]; 7.11 pg/ml [6.33; 7.88]; 7.10 pg/ml [5.55; 8.65], respectively). However, the subgroup of overweight older adults had higher IL-15 than young and middle aged overweight adults; Habitual physical activity did not affect blood IL-15 (standardized mean difference [SMD] 0.61 [-0.65; 1.88], p = 0.34); Chronic exercise reduced blood IL-15 in short-term interventions (<16 weeks) (SMD -0.14 [-0.27; -0.01], p = 0.04), but not studies of >16 weeks of intervention (SMD 0.44 [-0.26; 1.15], p = 0.22).

CONCLUSION

The present meta-analyses highlight the complex interaction of age, BMI and physical activity on blood IL-15 and emphasize the need to take these factors into account when considering the role of this myokine in health throughout life.

[Myokines in obese adolescents with aerobic exercise]

BACKGROUND

Myokines are synthesized by myocytes and released into the bloodstream in response to muscle fiber contraction. They have a positive effect on carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, muscle mass growth, osteogenesis, increase tissue sensitivity to insulin, counteract inflammation of adipose tissue. The study of their secretion in response to physical activity (FA) can help to personalize the therapy of obesity.

AIM

to study the features of the secretion of myokines in children with constitutionally exogenous obesity during physical activity of different duration and intensity and to evaluate their relationship with the parameters of the body composition.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

26 children (10 boys and 16 girls) were included in the study 15 [13; 16] years old, SDS BMI: +2.91 [2.24; 3.29], with sexual development according to Tanner 4-5. Two groups of 13 people were formed by random distribution. Group I performed FA (walking on a treadmill under the control of heart rate) of different duration: 30 and 60 minutes at the same intensity (less than 3 metabolic equivalents (MET)). Group II - FA of different intensity: low - less than 3 METH and moderate - 3-6 METH with the same duration of 45 minutes. Commercial kits for enzyme immunoassay were used to determine the level of myokines. The assessment of the compositional composition of the body was carried out by bioimpedance analysis (analyzer In Body 770, South Korea) in the morning, on an empty stomach. Statistical processing was carried out using STATISTICA v.12.0 (StatSoftInc., USA). The results are presented in the form of median (Me) and quartiles (Q1; Q3) corresponding to 25 and 75 percentiles. The critical significance level (p) was assumed to be <0.05.

RESULTS

moderate intensity FA leads to a maximum increase in the level of myokines: interleukin-6 (IL-6) by 215.7% and decorin by 34.3%, a decrease in the level of irisin by 16.5%. An hour-long low-intensity workout leads to a moderate increase in the level of IL-6 by 80.5%, to a decrease in the level of irisin by 31.1%. Myostatin increases equally both after 60-minute FA and after moderate intensity FA by 30.9% and 31.8%, respectively. Short low-intensity FA (lasting 30 minutes) it is not accompanied by a significant increase in the expression of myokines. The relationship between the amount of muscle (r=0.65), lean (r=0.62), fat-free mass (r=0.64) and the level of decorin after FA was noted. There was no statistically significant relationship between the parameters of the body composition and the levels of IL-6, myostatin, and irisin. There were no gender differences in both basal and stimulated myokine secretion.

CONCLUSION

Moderate intensity FA and low intensity 60-minute FA are most effective for obese children. A 30-minute low-intensity FN is insufficient to increase the secretion of myokines by skeletal muscles.

Evaluating the Effects of Increased Protein Intake on Muscle Strength, Hypertrophy and Power Adaptations with Concurrent Training: A Narrative Review

Concurrent training incorporates dual exercise modalities, typically resistance and aerobic-based exercise, either in a single session or as part of a periodized training program, that can promote muscle strength, mass, power/force and aerobic capacity adaptations for the purposes of sports performance or general health/wellbeing. Despite multiple health and exercise performance-related benefits, diminished muscle hypertrophy, strength and power have been reported with concurrent training compared to resistance training in isolation. Dietary protein is well-established to facilitate skeletal muscle growth, repair and regeneration during recovery from exercise. The degree to which increased protein intake can amplify adaptation responses with resistance exercise, and to a lesser extent aerobic exercise, has been highly studied. In contrast, much less focus has been directed toward the capacity for protein to enhance anabolic and metabolic responses with divergent contractile stimuli inherent to concurrent training and potentially negate interference in muscle strength, power and hypertrophy. This review consolidates available literature investigating increased protein intake on rates of muscle protein synthesis, hypertrophy, strength and force/power adaptations following acute and chronic concurrent training. Acute concurrent exercise studies provide evidence for the significant stimulation of myofibrillar protein synthesis with protein compared to placebo ingestion. High protein intake can also augment increases in lean mass with chronic concurrent training, although these increases do not appear to translate into further improvements in strength adaptations. Similarly, the available evidence indicates protein intake twice the recommended intake and beyond does not rescue decrements in selective aspects of muscle force and power production with concurrent training.

Nordic Walking Rather Than High Intensity Interval Training Reduced Myostatin Concentration More Effectively in Elderly Subjects and the Range of This Drop Was Modified by Metabolites of Vitamin D

The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent self-isolation exacerbated the problem of insufficient amounts of physical activity and its consequences. At the same time, this revealed the advantage of vitamin D. Thus, there was a need to verify the effects of those forms of training that can be performed independently. In this study, we examined the effects of Nordic walking (NW) and high intensity interval training (HIIT) with regard to the impact of the metabolite vitamin D. We assigned 32 overweight adults (age = 61 ± 12 years) to one of two training groups: NW = 18 and HIIT = 14. Body composition assessment and blood sample collection were conducted before starting the training programs and a day after their completion. NW training induced a significant decrease in myostatin (p = 0.05) concentration; however, the range was dependent on the baseline concentrations of vitamin D metabolites. This drop was accompanied by a significant negative correlation with the decorin concentration. Unexpectedly, NW caused a decrement in both forms of osteocalcin: undercarboxylated (Glu-OC) and carboxylated-type (Gla-OC). The scope of Glu-OC changes was dependent on a baseline concentration of 25(OH)D₂ (r = −0.60, p = 0.01). In contrast, the HIIT protocol did not induce any changes. Overall results revealed that NW diminished the myostatin concentration and that this effect is more pronounced among adults with a sufficient concentration of vitamin D metabolites.

Plasma Activin A and Decorin in Exercised Purebred Arabian Horses - Preliminary Study

Development of the musculoskeletal system occurs, in part, through an impact on regulatory proteins, such as activin A and decorin. Activin A induces atrophic effects on skeletal muscle, and decorin regulates the formation of connective tissue proteins like collagen and elastin in tendons and ligaments. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of different intensities of exercise on blood plasma activin A and decorin concentrations in horses. Ten young purebred Arabian horses were subjected to routine training sessions on a racetrack, and another 11 adult horses of the same breed participated in endurance rides. Race horses were examined during gallop tests over a distance of 1200 m and endurance horses at distances from 20 to 80 km. Blood samples were collected at rest and after exercise to determine plasma concentrations of activin A, decorin and cortisol. Despite differences in the intensity of exercise, the plasma decorin concentration remained unchanged, and activin A tended to decrease in endurance horses only. The exercise-induced changes in plasma activin A concentrations correlated with the covered distance (r = -0.43; P < .05), but not with the changes in cortisol values. Further studies are needed to confirm the usefulness of plasma activin A as a potential indicator of a horse's endurance performance.

Effect of Various Exercise Regimens on Selected Exercise-Induced Cytokines in Healthy People

Different forms of physical activity—endurance, resistance or dynamic power—stimulate cytokine release from various tissues to the bloodstream. Receptors for exercise-induced cytokines are present in muscle tissue, adipose tissue, liver, brain, bones, cardiovascular system, immune system, pancreas, and skin. They have autocrine, paracrine and endocrine activities. Many of them regulate the myocyte growth and differentiation necessary for muscle hypertrophy and myogenesis. They also modify energy homeostasis, lipid, carbohydrate, and protein metabolism, regulate inflammation and exchange information (crosstalk) between remote organs. So far, interleukin 6 and irisin have been the best studied exercise-induced cytokines. However, many more can be grouped into myokines, hepatokines and adipomyokines. This review focuses on the less known exercise-induced cytokines such as myostatin, follistatin, decorin, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, fibroblast growth factor 21 and interleukin 15, and their relation to various forms of exercise, i.e., acute vs. chronic, regular training in healthy people.

Effect of mountain ultra-marathon running on plasma angiopoietin-like protein 4 and lipid profile in healthy trained men

Purpose

Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) regulates lipid metabolism by inhibiting lipoprotein lipase activity and stimulating lipolysis in adipose tissue. The aim of this study was to find out whether the mountain ultra-marathon running influences plasma ANGPTL4 and whether it is related to plasma lipid changes.

Methods

Ten healthy men (age 31 ± 1.1 years) completed a 100-km ultra-marathon running. Plasma ANGPTL4, free fatty acids (FFA), triacylglycerols (TG), glycerol (Gly), total cholesterol (TC), low (LDL-C) and high (HDL-C) density lipoprotein-cholesterol were determined before, immediately after the run and after 90 min of recovery.

Results

Plasma ANGPTL4 increased during exercise from 68.0 ± 16.5 to 101.2 ± 18.1 ng/ml (p < 0.001). This was accompanied by significant increases in plasma FFA, Gly, HDL-C and decreases in plasma TG concentrations (p < 0.01). After 90 min of recovery, plasma ANGPTL4 and TG did not differ significantly from the exercise values, while plasma FFA, Gly, TC and HDL-C were significantly lower than immediately after the run.

TC/HDL-C and TG/HDL-C molar ratios were significantly reduced. The exercise-induced changes in plasma ANGPTL4 correlated positively with those of FFA (r = 0.73; p < 0.02), and HDL-C (r = 0.69; p < 0.05). Positive correlation was found also between plasma ANGPTL4 and FFA concentrations after 90 min of recovery (r = 0.77; p < 0.01).

Conclusions

The present data suggest that increase in plasma FFA during mountain ultra-marathon run may be involved in plasma ANGPTL4 release and that increase in ANGPTL4 secretion may be a compensatory mechanism against fatty acid-induced oxidative stress. Increase in plasma HDL-C observed immediately after the run may be due to the protective effect of ANGPTL4 on HDL.