Are similar inflammatory factors involved in strenuous exercise and sepsis?

Abstract

An increasing body of data suggest that strenuous exercise triggers an inflammatory response having some similarity with those occurring in sepsis. Indices of this inflammatory response to exercise (IRE) especially include leukocytosis, release of inflammatory mediators and acute phase reactants, tissue damage, priming of various white blood cell lines, production of free radicals; activation of complement, coagulation and fibrinolytic cascades. Inflammatory responses to strenuous exercise and sepsis could in part be due to the release of endotoxin in blood as common triggering factor, but it seems that tissue damage and/or contact system activation are more important triggering mechanisms in exercising subjects. While the magnitude and duration of cellular and humoral changes associated with IRE are quite different from those observed in sepsis, recent human studies suggested that chronic and/or excessive IRE could have adverse effects. Among the possible consequences of acute and chronic IRE are delayed onset muscular soreness and loss of force, cardiovascular complications, intravascular hemolysis, hypoferraemia and increased susceptibility to infection.

Activation of haemostasis by exercise, mental stress and adrenaline: effects on platelet sensitivity to thrombin and thrombin generation

“…In view of this, our present observation further supports the idea that physical exercise activates platelets in vivo. Another possibility that should be considered is that reduced GPIbα expression may reflect proteolysis of the GPIbα receptors [28,29] ; exercise may lead to leucocyte activation with release of proteolytic enzymes leading to the removal of the GPIbα N-terminal section [30]. Further studies are needed to resolve this issue.…”

Exercise and oxidative stress: Sources of free radicals and their impact on antioxidant systems

“…Although there has been increasing research in the past decade with respect to exercise and immune function, it was only recently that the links between neutrophil activation and ROS production started to emerge (3,(43)(44)(45). Some researchers propose that the body's immune system responds to an acute bout of intense exercise in much the same way as to sepsis wherein they share a common mediator, ROS (46). It has long been recognized that strenuous exercise can elicit muscle injury accompanied by an inflammatory response, which is characterized by increased protease and lysozymal enzyme activities in working muscle (10).…”

Effect of antioxidant vitamin treatment on the time course of hematological and hemorheological alterations after an exhausting exercise episode in human subjects

“…We have previously described the time course of these alterations, including hematocrit, red blood cell (RBC), and white blood cell (WBC) counts (54). Granulocyte percentages (i.e., number of granulocytes as a percentage of the total WBC count) were found to be increased after the exhausting exercise episode and were accompanied by enhanced WBC activation (54), suggesting an inflammation-like response (16,42,50). Blood viscosity and RBC mechanical properties are altered as a result of exhausting exercise (15,20,54), and heavy exercise is known to induce alterations of plasma composition (24,26…”