Abstract
Introduction: Differences in cognitive performance with exercise between men and women have previously been reported. In this study, we evaluated between-sex differences in oxygenation of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) with moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (AE), which could contribute to noted differences in cognitive function. Method: The subjects were ten men (age, 21.5 ± 0.5 years; height, 171.7 ± 4.8 cm; weight, 65.6 ± 5.6 kg) and ten women (age, 21.4 ± 0.5 years; height, 157.6 ± 4.9 cm; weight, 51.3 ± 6.5 kg). They completed our AE protocol, consisting of a 30-min leg-ergometer cycling at an intensity of 50% peak oxygen uptake, with an initial 4-min rest period for baseline measurement. Measures of the dynamics of cerebral oxygenation included: oxygenated hemoglobin (O2Hb) in the left and right PFC (LR-PFC) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (HHb). The 30-min exercise period was subdivided into six 5-min phases, with the average and peak values determined in each phase. Results: A significant interaction was found between LR-PFC HHb and sex (p < 0.001), with significantly higher values in men than in women in phases 3–6 (p < 0.05). Conclusion: We report a significant sex effect of HHb in the LR-PFC.
Highlights
Differences in cognitive performance with exercise between men and women have previously been reported
A previous study indicated that O2Hb is likely to be affected by the mean arterial pressure (MAP) and scalp blood flow (SBF)
The purpose of this study was to investigate sex-specific effects on prefrontal cortex (PFC) oxygenation during moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (AE). We examined this issue by comparing the PFC oxygen dynamics during a leg-cycle ergometer protocol of moderate-intensity AE between men and women
Summary
Differences in cognitive performance with exercise between men and women have previously been reported. We evaluated between-sex differences in oxygenation of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) with moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (AE), which could contribute to noted differences in cognitive function. AE contributes to the maintenance and improvement of cardiopulmonary function, with ≥30-min of AE, performed at an intensity of 40–60% of peak oxygen uptake (peakVO2 ), being effective to improve physical activity levels [1]. Moderate acute exercise improves physical function and cognitive function through an increase in cerebral blood flow to the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which has been identified in both young and elderly individuals [5,6,7,8,9,10]. Endocrine function associated with AE underpins improvements in adaptations to exercise and to improvement in cognitive and physical function, including optimal
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