Abstract
Exercise is known to have numerous neuroprotective and cognitive benefits, especially pertaining to memory and learning related processes. One potential link connecting them is exercise-mediated hippocampal neurogenesis, in which new neurons are generated and incorporated into hippocampal circuits. The present review synthesizes the extant literature detailing the relationship between exercise and hippocampal neurogenesis, and identifies a key molecule mediating this process, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). As a member of the neurotrophin family, BDNF regulates many of the processes within neurogenesis, such as differentiation and survival. Although much more is known about the direct role that exercise and BDNF have on hippocampal neurogenesis in rodents, their corresponding cognitive benefits in humans will also be discussed. Specifically, what is known about exercise-mediated hippocampal neurogenesis will be presented as it relates to BDNF to highlight the critical role that it plays. Due to the inaccessibility of the human brain, much less is known about the role BDNF plays in human hippocampal neurogenesis. Limitations and future areas of research with regards to human neurogenesis will thus be discussed, including indirect measures of neurogenesis and single nucleotide polymorphisms within the BDNF gene.
Highlights
Researchers have sought to elucidate the mechanisms behind the axiom that a healthy body leads to a healthy mind
It has been shown that—contrary to the age-old notion that the number of neurons in the brain remains static after prenatal and neonatal development—new neurons can be generated in the adult brain via a process known as neurogenesis, which can attenuate the deleterious effects of neurodegeneration
Preliminary research has suggested that neurogenesis may occur in numerous other areas of the brain, including the amygdala and hypothalamus, which may Exercise-Mediated Neurogenesis via brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)
Summary
Researchers have sought to elucidate the mechanisms behind the axiom that a healthy body leads to a healthy mind. It has been shown that—contrary to the age-old notion that the number of neurons in the brain remains static after prenatal and neonatal development—new neurons can be generated in the adult brain via a process known as neurogenesis, which can attenuate the deleterious effects of neurodegeneration (van Praag et al, 1999). This phenomenon has been linked to exercise, with a significant portion of subsequent neural growth occurring in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus (Cotman and Berchtold, 2002). Due to discrepancies between rodent and human studies, limitations and future areas of investigation with regards to neurogenesis in humans will be discussed
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