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Physical exercise counteracts genetic susceptibility to depression
Helmuth Haslacher1, Matthias Michlmayr, Delgerdalai Batmyagmar
1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
Neuropsychobiology
|May 23, 2015
Summary
Intensive endurance sports may reduce depression risk in older adults, particularly those with a specific genetic variant. Exercise positively influences brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) effects on mood, counteracting genetic susceptibility.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Genetics
- Gerontology
Background:
- Depression is common in the elderly.
- A specific brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene variant (rs6265) is linked to increased depression risk.
- The impact of exercise on this genetic susceptibility in older adults is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if intensive endurance sports can mitigate the genetic predisposition to depression in elderly individuals.
- To examine the interaction between physical activity, BDNF genotype, and depressive symptoms in older adults.
Main Methods:
- Study included 55 elderly marathon athletes and 58 controls.
- Genotyping of the BDNF rs6265 variant was performed using the TaqMan method.
- Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS).
Main Results:
- A significant interaction was found between exercise group and BDNF genotypes (rs6265) for both BDI and GDS scores (p=0.027 and p=0.013, respectively).
- Elderly individuals with the BDNF [C];[C] genotype who did not participate in sports had a significantly higher risk of subclinical depression.
- No such effect was observed in carriers of the [T] allele, and rs6265 allele carrier status alone was not a significant predictor.
Conclusions:
- Physical exercise positively modulates the effects of BDNF on mood in the elderly.
- This beneficial effect of exercise appears stronger in individuals homozygous for the BDNF [C];[C] genotype (expressing the 66Val variant).
- Endurance sports can influence genetic susceptibility to depressive symptoms in older populations.
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