Jorjani Biomedicine Journal

Background and objectives: Proper nutrition and exercise are two effective factors in improving liver function in old age. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of aerobic training (T) with consumption of Citrus aurantium (CA) on SIR1 and PGC-1α gene expression levels in the liver tissue of elderly rats.
Method: In this experimental study, 25 elderly female rats were placed in five groups of 5 rats, including 1) control, 2) sham, 3) CA, 4) T and 5) T+CA. Over the course of eight weeks, groups 4 and 5 ran on the treadmill three sessions per week at 65 to 75 percent of the maximum running speed, and groups 3 and 5 received 300 mg/kg/day of CA extract peritoneally. Forty- eight hours after the last training session and CA consumption, SIR1 and PGC-1α gene expression levels in the liver tissue were measured by real-time PCR method. In order to analyze the findings, the Shapiro-Wilk, one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s post- hoc tests were used (P≤0.05).
Results: T had a significant effect on increasing SIR1 (P = 0.009) and PGC-1α (P = 0.001) gene expression levels; CA had a significant effect on reducing SIR1 gene expression levels and increasing PGC-1α (P = 0.001); T + CA had a greater effect on increasing PGC-1α gene expression levels than T and CA (P = 0.001).
Conclusion: Although eight weeks of T and CA consumption alone appear to improve PGC-1α gene expression levels in the liver tissue of elderly rats, concurrent T and CA consumption has more favorable effects than each of them alone.

Background and Objective: Aging is the major risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases as aging increases plasma levels of pro-inflammatory mediators and endothelial dysfunction. Physical exercise and spirulina improve the endothelial dysfunction and chronic inflammation that accompanies aging. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of Aerobic Exercise (AT), with blue-algae Spirulina Supplementation (SP) on the indicators of endothelial dysfunction and insulin resistance in overweight adult men.
Material and Methods: In this clinical trial study, 40 overweight adult men (age 57.50±4.84 years, Body mass index: BMI 26.90±2.85 kg/m2) were selected from Bandar-e-Anzali and randomly allocated into five groups; including Control-Normal (CN), Overweight (OW), Overweight-Aerobic Training (OWAT), Overweight-Spirulina (OWSP) and Overweight-Aerobic Training -Spirulina (OWATSP). Training groups participated in an aerobic exercise program for eight weeks, five sessions per week (with an intensity of 65 to 85% of peak heart rate, 40 minutes). The OWSP and OWATSP groups were provided with two 500 mg SP tablets daily in the morning and evening. Data were analyzed using an independent t-test and ANCOVA at a significance level of
P <0.05.
Results: The levels of endothelin-1(ET-1), Intercellular Adhesion Molecule 1 (ICAM-1), Selectin-E, and HOMA-IR index in the OW group were higher than CN (P≤0.05). AT and SP significantly reduced ET-1, ICAM-1, Selectin-E, and HOMA-IR (P≤0.05). In the OWATSP group, the levels of ET-1, ICAM-1, Selectin-E, and HOMA-IR were significantly lower than OW and OWSP (P≤0.05). NO levels significantly decreased in OWATSP and OWAT (P≤0.05).
Conclusion: Aerobic training and spirulina supplementation could improve the endothelial function in overweight adult men, by altering the levels of ET-1, ICAM-1, Selectin-E, and NO. However, the simultaneous effect of AT with SP on these indices was better. Improved endothelial function was associated with an improvement in insulin resistance index.