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Resistance training improves insulin secretion and may benefit patients with diabetes, study finds (44 notícias)

Publicado em 20 de abril de 2023

A study conducted at the State University of Campinas (Unicamp) indicates that the regular practice of resistance exercises, such as bodybuilding or functional training, can be as beneficial for glycemic control as aerobic activities, such as running or swimming. The research results were published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.

“In recent years, the benefits of physical activity for the body as a whole have been associated with the release of molecules called myokines into the bloodstream. And most of the studies use aerobic exercises as a reference”, contextualizes Gabriela Alves Bronczek, first author of the work, conducted during her doctorate in the Graduate Program in Functional and Molecular Biology at Unicamp.

“As it is already known that different modalities activate different pathways, leading to the release of specific molecules, we thought that perhaps resistance training, more related to bodybuilding, could have a different effect or release different molecules. Hence the idea of ​​investigating its action on pancreatic beta cells, which are responsible for secreting insulin.”

For this, during the study, which was supported by FAPESP through two projects (18/15032-9 and 18/05979-9), beta cells from rats were treated with blood serum from animals of the same species that underwent training of strength, which consisted of climbing a ladder approximately one meter high with a load attached to the tail. There were eight climbs per section, varying between 50%, 75%, 90% and 100% of maximum load, five days a week for ten weeks. Then, the cells were subjected, in vitro, to a cocktail of pro-inflammatory cytokines to induce a condition similar to that of type 1 diabetes. Result: the treatment prevented both dysfunction and cell death.

The next step was to work with an animal model of type 1 diabetes. To induce the disease in mice, the animals were given low doses of streptozotocin, a drug that specifically destroys the beta cells of the pancreas.

After ten weeks of resistance training, the rodents showed improved glucose tolerance and reduced blood glucose. In an evaluation of the morphology of the pancreas, an increase in beta cell mass was observed. This proved that strength exercise causes cells to become more efficient at secreting insulin in response to glucose stimulation.

“This leads us to believe that molecules released during resistance exercise may improve beta cell functioning and provide all these benefits,” says Bronczek.

A previous study by the group, published in 2021 in the journal Scientific Reports, had already evaluated the effect of resistance exercise on beta cells in healthy animals and observed the same effects.

Next steps

“Faced with the obesity pandemic in the world and the worsening eating habits of the vast majority of the population, the practice of physical activity is extremely important”, comments Antonio Carlos Boschiero, professor at Unicamp and Bronczek’s advisor. “Understanding the benefits of resistance exercise opens up even more doors, as it can be done, for example, from a wheelchair,” he adds.

To follow this line of study, Bronczek intends to focus his postdoctoral studies on the analysis of blood serum from animals. The objective is to identify one or more molecules that could really be responsible for mediating all the observed beneficial effects.

“If we manage to reach that point, it could be a first step in the search for a potential therapeutic target”, believes Bronczek. “This molecule could be synthesized or isolated and used in patients with type 1 diabetes.”

Another important outcome would be the more grounded recommendation of resistance exercises as a way to contribute to the glycemic maintenance of diabetic patients. “This is because we will better understand how this type of activity works, its physiology and how it impacts on glycemic homeostasis.”

The article Resistance Training Improves Beta Cell Glucose Sensing and Survival in Diabetic Models can be read at: www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/23/16/9427.

Julia Moioli | FAPESP Agency