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Effects of different lengths of high-intensity interval training microcycles on the systemic and hippocampal inflammatory state and antioxidant balance of immature rats

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Abstract

There is a lack of evidence on the effects of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) microcycle duration on the antioxidant capacity and hippocampal inflammatory response of young (immature) samples. This study compared two HIIT microcycles lengths on adaptation to training, antioxidant balance, and systemic and hippocampal inflammation in immature rats. Twenty-four immature Wistar rats (27 days) were equally divided into groups: control; 4-day HIIT (3 training days + 1 rest day); and 7-day HIIT (6 training days + 1 rest day). Both microcycles of 4 and 7 days were 28 days of training (37–38 m min−1). Running performance improved in all training groups compared to controls (P < 0.05). However, the 7-day HIIT group statistically increased serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) compared to the control and 4-day HIIT groups (P < 0.05). The total serum antioxidant capacity in the 7-day HIIT group was statistically lower than in the control group (P < 0.05). There was no statistical difference for the analysis of serum malondialdehyde between the groups. The hippocampal gene expression of IL-6, IL-1β, IL-10, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in the training groups was statistically higher than in the control group (P = 0.01), with no significant difference between the 4-day HIIT and 7-day HIIT groups. We concluded that HIIT microcycles with a longer duration decrease the antioxidant capacity and increase the systematic and hippocampal inflammation. Thus, we suggest using short HIIT microcycles for young (immature) groups due to improved running performance with less inflammatory and antioxidant changes.

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Acknowledgements

Thanks to the University of Zanjan.

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The authors declare no funding received.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sport Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran

    Ali Gorzi, Ahmad Rahmani & Zahra Mohammadi

  2. Laboratory of Morphoquantitative Studies and Immunohistochemistry, Department of Physical Education, São Judas Tadeu University, Butantã, São Paulo-SP, Brazil

    Walter Krause Neto

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  1. Ali Gorzi
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  2. Ahmad Rahmani
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  3. Zahra Mohammadi
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  4. Walter Krause Neto
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Contributions

AG, AR, and ZM constructed the research question, the research method, trained the rodents, collected the biological material, analyzed the data, wrote and approved the final text. WKN analyzed the data, wrote and approved the final text.

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Correspondence to Ahmad Rahmani.

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Conflicts of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest. This project was supported partly by the University of Zanjan.

Ethical approval

The Institutional Animal Ethics Committee at the University of Zanjan (Zanjan, Iran) approved the experimental protocol (Ethics Approval Code: ZNU.ECRA.2018–5).

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Gorzi, A., Rahmani, A., Mohammadi, Z. et al. Effects of different lengths of high-intensity interval training microcycles on the systemic and hippocampal inflammatory state and antioxidant balance of immature rats. Mol Biol Rep 48, 5003–5011 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-021-06484-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-021-06484-w

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