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Exercise training improves functional post-ischemic recovery in senescent heart
Christine Le Page1, Philippe Noirez, José Courty
1Laboratoire Croissance cellulaire, Réparation et Régénération Tissulaires, UMR CNRS 7149, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université Paris Est, Créteil, France. Christine.Le-Page@univ-paris5.fr
Experimental Gerontology
|November 6, 2008
Summary
Regular moderate running exercise enhances recovery of aged hearts after ischemia and reperfusion injury. This cardioprotection in older hearts is linked to reduced protein oxidation and increased HSP70 and eNOS levels.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Physiology
- Gerontology
- Exercise Science
Background:
- Ischemic cardiac diseases and myocardial infarction risk increase with age.
- Endurance exercise offers cardioprotection in adult hearts against ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury.
- The impact of exercise on IR recovery in aging hearts remains understudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of moderate running training on the post-ischemic functional recovery of senescent rat hearts.
- To evaluate the impact of exercise on coronary perfusion and contractile function following IR in aged myocardium.
- To explore the molecular mechanisms underlying exercise-induced cardioprotection in aging hearts.
Main Methods:
- Senescent rats underwent 12 weeks of moderate running training (1h/day, 5 days/week).
- Isolated hearts from sedentary and trained aged rats were subjected to 45 minutes of low-flow ischemia followed by 30 minutes of reperfusion.
- Contractile function (active tension) and coronary flow were measured, alongside assessments of protein carbonylation, HSP70, and eNOS levels.
Main Results:
- Moderate running training significantly improved the recovery of active tension and coronary flow in aged hearts post-IR.
- Exercise intervention was associated with reduced left ventricular protein carbonylation.
- Trained senescent hearts exhibited increased myocardial content of heat-shock-protein 70 (HSP70) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS).
Conclusions:
- Regular moderate physical exercise confers cardioprotection to aged hearts against ischemia-reperfusion injury.
- Exercise-induced cardioprotection in aging is associated with decreased oxidative stress and enhanced expression of HSP70 and eNOS.
- These findings suggest that exercise is a viable strategy to improve cardiac resilience in the elderly population.
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