Abstract
Purpose
The impact of exercise training on testicular function is relatively ill-defined. To gain new insights into this important topic, published data, deriving from both humans and animal studies, were critically analyzed.
Results and conclusions
The effects of exercise on the hypothalamus–pituitary–gonadal axis, influenced by the type, intensity and duration of the exercise program, can be evaluated in terms of total and free testosterone and/or luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone serum levels and sperm parameters. High-intensity exercise promotes a common decrease in these parameters, and therefore, negatively impacts upon testicular function. However, published data for moderate-intensity exercise training are inconsistent. Conversely, there is consistent evidence to support the benefits of exercise training to prevent and/or counteract the impairment of testis function caused by aging, obesity and doxorubicin treatment. This positive effect is likely the consequence of decreased oxidative stress and inflammatory status. In the future, it will be important to clarify the molecular mechanisms which explain these reported discrepancies and to establish guidelines for an active lifestyle to promote healthy testicular function.
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Abbreviations
- 3β-HSD:
-
3β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase
- 17β-HSD:
-
17β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase
- BMI:
-
Body mass index
- CAT:
-
Catalase
- DNA:
-
Deoxyribonucleic acid
- DOX:
-
Doxorubicin
- FSH:
-
Follicle-stimulating hormone
- G6PDH:
-
Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase
- GPx:
-
Glutathione peroxidase
- GST:
-
Glutathione S-transferase
- HCR:
-
High capacity runners
- HPG:
-
Hypothalamus–pituitary–gonadal
- HSP70:
-
Heat shock protein 70
- IL-1β:
-
Interleukin-1β
- IL-10:
-
Interleukin-10
- JAK2:
-
Janus kinase 2
- LCR:
-
Low intrinsic capacity runners
- LDH:
-
Lactate dehydrogenase
- LEP:
-
Leptin
- LH:
-
Luteinizing hormone
- MDA:
-
Malondialdehyde
- METs:
-
Metabolic equivalents
- NADPH:
-
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate
- NF-kB:
-
Nuclear factor kappa B
- Nrf2:
-
Nuclear factor erythroid 2p45-related factor 2
- ODF-1:
-
Outer dense fiber protein 1
- PO2m :
-
Microvascular oxygen partial pressure
- SAMP8:
-
Senescence-accelerated prone mouse model
- SHBG:
-
Sex hormone binding globulin
- SOD:
-
Superoxide dismutase
- StAR:
-
Steroidogenic acute regulatory protein
- STAT3:
-
Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3
- TGF-α:
-
Transforming growth factor alpha
- TNF-α:
-
Tumor necrosis factor alpha
- TUNEL:
-
Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labelling
- \(V{{\text{O}}_{{2_{\hbox{max} }}}}\) :
-
Maximal oxygen uptake
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Acknowledgements
We are thankful to the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), European Union, QREN, FEDER and COMPETE for funding the iBiMED (UID/BIM/04501/2013 and POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007628), QOPNA (UID/QUI/00062/2013) and CIAFEL (UID/DTP/00617/2013) research units, and the research project RUNawayPCa (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006958 and PTDC/DTP-DES/6077/2014).
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BM, JH, RF and MF contributed to the writing of this manuscript. JH contributed to the English editing. All authors approved the final version.
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Communicated by Michael Lindinger.
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Matos, B., Howl, J., Ferreira, R. et al. Exploring the effect of exercise training on testicular function. Eur J Appl Physiol 119, 1–8 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-018-3989-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-018-3989-6