Impact of three different types of exercise on components of the inflammatory response

Abstract

It was hypothesized that muscle injury would be greater with eccentric than with all-out or prolonged exercise, and that immune changes might provide an indication that supplements the information provided by traditional markers such as creatine kinase (CK) or delayed-onset muscle soreness. Eight healthy males [mean (SE): age = 24.9 (2.3) years, maximum oxygen consumption (VO2(max)) = 43.0 (3.1) ml x kg(-1) x min(-1)] were each assigned to four experimental conditions, one at a time, using a randomized-block design: 5 min of cycle ergometer exercise at 90% VO2(max) (AO), a standard circuit-training routine (CT), 2 h cycle ergometer exercise at 60% VO2(max) (Long), or remained seated for 5 h. Blood samples were analyzed for CK, natural killer (NK) cell counts (CD3(-)/CD16(+)56(+)), cytolytic activity and plasma levels of the cytokines interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10, and tissue necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). CK levels were only elevated significantly 72 h following CT. NK cell counts increased significantly during all three types of exercise, but returned to pre-exercise baseline values within 3 h of recovery. Cytolytic activity per NK cell was not significantly modified by any type of exercise. Prolonged exercise induced significant increases in plasma IL-6 and TNF-alpha. We conclude that the lack of correlation between traditional markers of muscle injury (plasma CK concentrations and muscle soreness rankings) and immune markers of the inflammatory response suggests that, for the types and intensities of exercise examined in this study, the exercise-induced inflammatory response is modified by humoral and cardiovascular correlates of exercise.

Immune Responses to Strenuous Exercise and Carbohydrate Intake in Boys and Men

“…The magnitude of increase in IL-6 after exercise is typically intensity dependent (47). In contrast, TNF-␣ generally increases only with high-intensity, long-duration exercise involving a large muscle mass (48). Therefore, it was not surprising that, after exercise in the current study, IL-6 increased without changes in TNF-␣ levels in the men (Fig.…”

Endocrine and immune responses to resistance training in prostate cancer patients

“…The acute changes in IL-6 and TNF-a contrast with other findings following resistance exercise in young healthy individuals. Nieman et al 26 found an increase in plasma IL-6 concentration after 2 h intense resistance training, whereas Brenner et al 27 reported no change in plasma IL-6 or TNF-a concentration following intense circuit training. These differences could be due to variation in exercise protocols and subject characteristics.…”

Metabolic and endocrine response to exercise: sympathoadrenal integration with skeletal muscle

“…an increase in cytokines (such as interleukin 6 (IL6), IL10 and tumournecrosing factor alpha) the metabolic challenge presented by exercise could be viewed as a stress response. The initial interpretation of the exercise-induced increases in white blood cell number was thought to be due to a systemic inflammatory response or due to exercise-induced muscle damage (Brenner et al 1999, Fischer 2006. Interest in the systemic role of cytokine expression has gathered pace since the early observation that the circulating cytokine concentration increases after moderate prolonged exercise (Fischer 2006).…”