Endothelial and inflammatory responses to acute exercise in perimenopausal and late postmenopausal women

Abstract

Endothelial dysfunction and inflammation are characteristics of subclinical atherosclerosis and may increase through progressive menopausal stages. Evaluating endothelial responses to acute exercise can reveal underlying dysfunction not apparent in resting conditions. The purpose of this study was to investigate markers of endothelial function and inflammation before and after acute exercise in healthy low-active perimenopausal (PERI) and late postmenopausal (POST) women. Flow-mediated dilation (FMD), CD31/CD42b and CD62E endothelial microparticles (EMPs), and the circulating inflammatory factors monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP-1), interleukin 8 (IL-8), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were measured before and 30 min after acute exercise. Before exercise, FMD was not different between groups (PERI: 6.4 ± 0.9% vs. POST: 6.5 ± 0.8%, P = 0.97); however, after acute exercise PERI tended to improve FMD (8.5 ± 0.9%, P = 0.09), whereas POST did not (6.2 ± 0.8%, P = 0.77). Independent of exercise, we observed transient endothelial dysfunction in POST with repeated FMD measures. There was a group × exercise interaction for CD31/CD42b EMPs (P = 0.04), where CD31/CD42b EMPs were similar before exercise (PERI: 57.0 ± 6.7 EMPs/μl vs. POST: 58.5 ± 5.3 EMPs/μl, P = 0.86) but were higher in POST following exercise (PERI: 48.2 ± 6.7 EMPs/μl vs. POST: 69.4 ± 5.3 EMPs/μl, P = 0.023). CD62E EMPs were lower in PERI compared with POST before exercise (P < 0.001) and increased in PERI (P = 0.04) but did not change in POST (P = 0.68) in response to acute exercise. After acute exercise, MCP-1 (P = 0.055), TNF-α (P = 0.02), and IL-8 (P < 0.001) were lower in PERI but only IL-8 decreased in POST (P < 0.001). Overall, these data suggest that perimenopausal and late postmenopausal women display different endothelial and inflammatory responses to acute exercise.

Effect of exercise intensity on circulating microparticles in men and women

“…Consistent with these results, previous investigations have found that continuous exercise does not alter CD62E + MP concentrations during or after exercise in men (Guiraud et al., ; Mobius‐Winkler et al., ; Sossdorf et al., ; Wilhelm et al., ). However, in contrast to the present findings, other studies examining CD62E + MPs after exercise have produced mixed results (Durrer et al., ; Lansford et al., ; Serviente et al., ; Sossdorf et al., ). Specifically, researchers in our laboratory previously reported no change among women in CD62E + MPs after ∼60 min of continuous exercise, whereas men demonstrated an increase in CD62E + MPs after ∼45 min of continuous exercise at 60–70% (Lansford et al., ).…”

“…Despite multiple studies, only a few of which have included both men and women, the effect of acute exercise on circulating CD62E + MP concentrations remains inconclusive (Durrer et al., ; Guiraud et al., ; Lansford et al., ; Mobius‐Winkler et al., ; Serviente et al., ; Sossdorf et al., , ; Wilhelm et al., ). We demonstrate that MICE lowers CD62E + MPs during and after exercise in women, but not men, whereas HIIE had no effect on CD62E + MP levels.…”

“…Plasma was centrifuged for 20 min at 2000 g , and stored in 500 μl aliquots at −80°C until analysis. Microparticle concentrations were determined in batch assays as previously described (Serviente et al., ). Briefly, cell‐free plasma was labelled with 20 μl of FITC‐CD34 or PE‐CD62E (Becton, Dickinson and Company) antibodies to determine MP fractions.…”

“…Plasma was centrifuged for 20 min at 2000g, and stored in 500 l aliquots at −80 • C until analysis. Microparticle concentrations were determined in batch assays as previously described (Serviente et al, 2016 Additionally, investigations determining the effect of exercise on CD34 + MPs are limited to one study (Lansford et al, 2016). We examined CD62E + MPs because increased concentrations indicate a pro-inflammatory endothelium (Jimenez et al, 2003), and in light of our previous findings demonstrating sex differences in CD62E + MP concentrations after exercise (Lansford et al, 2016).…”

“…inflammation, reactive oxygen species, hypoxia) have been shown to alter circulating MPs, but the extent to which these factors contribute to the rate of MP shedding or clearance is not completely understood (Ayers et al., ; Curtis et al., ; Dignat‐George & Boulanger, ; Hoyer et al., ). Generally, results have varied with regard to the magnitude and direction of exercise‐induced changes in MP concentrations, probably owing to the diversity among exercise protocols (Durrer et al., ; Guiraud et al., ; Lansford et al., ; Mobius‐Winkler et al., ; Serviente et al., ; Sossdorf, Otto, Claus, Gabriel, & Lösche, , ; Wilhelm, Gonzalez‐Alonso, Parris, & Rakobowchuk, ). As previous investigations have used a variety of exercise protocols, it seems plausible that exercise mode, intensity and duration all influence the degree of variation in MP concentrations (Durrer et al., ; Guiraud et al., ; Lansford et al., ; Mobius‐Winkler et al., ; Serviente et al., ; Sossdorf et al., , ; Wilhelm et al., ).…”