Effects of 8 weeks of moderate-intensity resistance training on muscle changes in postmenopausal women with different angiotensin-converting enzyme insertion/deletion polymorphisms of interest

Abstract

The aim of the study was to explore the association between angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism and muscle adaptations to moderate-intensity resistance training in postmenopausal women. Forty healthy postmenopausal Chinese women (aged 53-66 years) were recruited and grouped by ACE I/D polymorphism (the homozygous deletion genotype [DD], n = 12; the I allele carriers [II/ID], n = 28). All participants performed an 8-week full-body resistance training program at moderate intensity with 15-repetition maximum. Upper- and lower-limb muscle mass, grip and back strength, anatomical cross-sectional area of the rectus femoris (ACSARF), isokinetic knee extension strength (MVCKE) and knee flexion strength were measured before and after training. Our results showed significant genotype × time interaction in ACSARF and MVCKE (P = 0.007 and P = 0.03, respectively) with the DD group having greater changes in corresponding parameters than the I-allele carriers (P = 0.012 and P = 0.018, respectively). Multivariate linear regression results showed that the ACE DD genotype was positively related to the grip strength adaptation (r = 0.48, P = 0.05). This study improves our understanding of the association between the ACE I/D polymorphism and muscular responses to moderate intensity resistance training among postmenopausal women and revealed that the DD genotype has predominant adaptations in grip strength, rectus femoris size, and knee extensor strength.