Effects of High-Intensity Exercise Training on Adipose Tissue Mass, Glucose Uptake and Protein Content in Pre- and Post-menopausal Women

Abstract

The menopausal transition is accompanied by changes in adipose tissue storage, leading to an android body composition associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in post-menopausal women. Estrogens probably affect local adipose tissue depots differently. We investigated how menopausal status and exercise training influence adipose tissue mass, adipose tissue insulin sensitivity and adipose tissue proteins associated with lipogenesis/lipolysis and mitochondrial function. Healthy, normal-weight pre- ( n = 21) and post-menopausal ( n = 20) women participated in high-intensity exercise training three times per week for 12 weeks. Adipose tissue distribution was determined by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry and magnetic resonance imaging. Adipose tissue glucose uptake was assessed by positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) by the glucose analog [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose ([18F]FDG) during continuous insulin infusion (40 mU·m −2 ·min −1 ). Protein content associated with insulin signaling, lipogenesis/lipolysis, and mitochondrial function were determined by western blotting in abdominal and femoral white adipose tissue biopsies. The mean age difference between the pre- and the post-menopausal women was 4.5 years. Exercise training reduced subcutaneous (~4%) and visceral (~6%) adipose tissue masses similarly in pre- and post-menopausal women. Insulin-stimulated glucose uptake, assessed by [18F]FDG-uptake during PET/CT, was similar in pre- and post-menopausal women in abdominal, gluteal, and femoral adipose tissue depots, despite skeletal muscle insulin resistance in post- compared to pre-menopausal women in the same cohort. Insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in adipose tissue depots was not changed after 3 months of high-intensity exercise training, but insulin sensitivity was higher in visceral compared to subcutaneous adipose tissue depots (~139%). Post-menopausal women exhibited increased hexokinase and adipose triglyceride lipase content in subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue. Physical activity in the early post-menopausal years reduces abdominal obesity, but insulin sensitivity of adipose tissue seems unaffected by both menopausal status and physical activity.

The effect of exercise training on adipose tissue insulin sensitivity: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…One study was a non‐randomized controlled trial, 38 while another study utilized a controlled, repeated measures, longitudinal design 29 . The remaining 12 studies were neither randomized nor had a control group 26–28,39–47 . With regard to statistical power, only four out of 22 studies reported sample size calculations 32,33,37,40 …”

“…The remaining 12 studies were neither randomized nor had a control group 26–28,39–47 . With regard to statistical power, only four out of 22 studies reported sample size calculations 32,33,37,40 …”

“…Twenty‐two studies, including six RCTs, 30,32–36 investigated the effect of exercise training on adipose tissue insulin sensitivity 26–47 . Seven studies, including eight intervention arms, directly reported ADIPO‐IR 27–29,31,32,34,37 .…”

“…The participants had a weighted mean age of 51 years (range 21 to 73), while data were not available for one study 45 . Twenty‐two exercise training groups comprised of participants with overweight or obesity; while in four, specific exercise training arms participants were classified as healthy weight (18.5 ≤ BMI < 25.0 kg·m −2 ) 34,40,46 . Consequently, the pooled anthropometric characteristics of the participants with available data were as follows: body weight: 90.3 kg (range 66.1 to 114.4), BMI: 29.8 kg·m −2 (range 22.2 to 40.3), and body fat: 32.7% (range 17.9 to 43.8).…”

Expression of HK2, PKM2, and PFKM Is Associated with Metastasis and Late Disease Onset in Breast Cancer Patients

“…Expression of glycolytic genes was significantly higher in postmenopausal as compared to premenopausal women in the present cohort. Studies performed by Mandrup et al suggest that there is a higher expression of hexokinase protein in abdominal adipose tissue as well as skeletal muscle tissue of postmenopausal women [ 36 ]. This may attribute to the estrogen production in adipose tissue; the key source of estrogen in post-menopausal women.…”