Systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect of exercise training on asprosin in randomized controlled trials

Asprosin, a protein that enhances insulin resistance by stimulating hepatic glucose secretion, is linked to obesity, metabolic disorders, and cardiovascular diseases. This systematic review and meta-analysis investigate the influence of exercise training (ET) on circulating concentrations of asprosin. A systematic search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases was conducted for all randomized controlled clinical trials from January 2016 to November 2024. A total of 431 relevant articles were retrieved and screened according to the study population, intervention method, and study type, resulting in the selection of 14 articles for the meta-analysis. All statistical results were analyzed using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Software version 2 (CMA2). The overall effect size, using Hedges' g, based on the random effects model for asprosin with ET, was -1.70 (95% CI -2.17 to -1.23, p = 0.0001). A decrease in asprosin concentration was observed with all types of ET including aerobic training (AT, H = -1.71, p = 0.0001), high-intensity interval training (HIIT, H = -1.81, p = 0.001), and resistance training (RT, H = -1.62, p = 0.0001). Furthermore, subgroup analysis showed differences in asprosin based on body mass index (Q-value = 11.09, df = 2, p = 0.004) and health status of the subjects (Q-value = 12.64, df = 2, p = 0.002); however, there were no differences based on sex (p = 0.67), types (p = 0.96), and duration (p = 0.34) of training. Our findings suggest that ET is associated with a decrease in circulating asprosin that could have a beneficial effect in preventing metabolic disease that is enhanced with obesity. Systematic review registration PROSPERO: CRD42023468813.