Modality-specific training adaptations - do they lead to a dampened acute inflammatory response to exercise?

Area of Science:

• Exercise Physiology
• Immunology
• Sports Science

Background:

• Chronic training adaptations influence the acute inflammatory response to exercise.
• The impact of modality-specific training on inflammatory responses is less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the acute inflammatory response to upper-body (arm-crank) versus lower-body (cycle ergometer) interval exercise.
• To investigate the role of chronic modality-specific training adaptations in modulating these responses.

Main Methods:

• Ninety minutes of work-matched interval exercise on arm-crank and cycle ergometers.
• Inclusion of 8 trained paddlers and 8 trained cyclists.
• Analysis of plasma Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and monocyte intracellular heat shock protein 72 (iHsp72) expression pre- and post-exercise.

Main Results:

• Both upper- and lower-body exercise increased IL-6, with a greater increase following lower-body exercise.
• Lower-body exercise induced a larger iHsp72 response compared to upper-body exercise.
• Chronic upper-body training adaptations attenuated the iHsp72 response to arm-crank exercise.

Conclusions:

• The acute inflammatory response to lower-body interval exercise is greater than work-matched upper-body exercise.
• Modality-specific training adaptations can dampen the inflammatory response (iHsp72) to exercise.
• Exercise may be less effective for reducing chronic low-grade inflammation in individuals relying on upper-body exercise, such as wheelchair users.