Regular Sport Activity Is Able to Reduce the Level of Genomic Damage

Abstract

Regular physical activity is considered one of the most valid tools capable of reducing the risk of onset of many diseases in humans. However, it is known that intense physical activity can induce high levels of genomic damage, while moderate exercise can elicit a favorable adaptive response by the organism. We evaluated, by the buccal micronuclei assay, the frequencies of micronuclei, nuclear buds and binucleated cells in a sample of amateur athletes practicing different disciplines, comparing the obtained data with those of subjects who practiced sports just occasionally and subjects that did not practice sport at all. The aim was to evaluate whether physical activity affects background levels of genomic damage and whether the different sports disciplines, as well as some gene polymorphisms, differentially affect these levels. A total of 206 subjects, 125 athletes and 81 controls, were recruited. Athletes showed significantly lower values of micronuclei, nuclear buds and binucleated cells with respect to controls. Sprinters and Martial Artists displayed significantly higher frequencies of micronuclei than other categories of athletes. Finally, neither sex nor gene polymorphisms seemed to influence the levels of genomic damage, confirming that the observed genomic damage is probably due to the nature of the sport activity.

A retrospective analysis of spontaneous chromosomal aberrations in human lymphocyte cultures of individuals from Bosnia and Herzegovina

“…Generally, the level of chromosome aberrations may differ between the countries and this could be attributed to lifestyle differences, geographical location, weather conditions, and pollution levels across Europe that could affect the frequencies of such parameters (Sierra-Torres et al, 2004;Sabirov et al, 2020;Musilova et al, 2023). On the contrary, certain lifestyle factors have beneficial effects in maintaining genomic integrity (Fenech et al, 2023;Santovito et al, 2023). Accordingly, limitations of this study include lack of anthropometric or lifestyle factors data (e.g., smoking status, cancer history of cancer, alcohol consumption, etc) for included individuals.…”

Nutritional Modulation of Hepcidin in the Treatment of Various Anemic States

“…Intense and prolonged exercise increases oxidative stress [74] and favors the increase in hepcidin. On the other hand, regular and moderate physical activity reduces the production of free radicals [75]. In sports, hepcidin can increase due to the activation of the CREBH pathway [29].…”