The role of exercise on oxidative stress and inflammation in the aging brain

Abstract

Brain inflammation and oxidative stress are implicated in certain pathologies such as stroke and Alzheimer's disease, and become more prominent with age and/or metabolic diseases like atherosclerosis. Exercise training has been shown to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, providing protection in many diseases. We hypothesize that exercise training could improve oxidative stress and inflammation in ApoE−/− mice, specifically in the brain. A 12‐week exercise or sedentary program was enforced in young (8 weeks) and old (66 weeks) ApoE−/− mice on high fat/cholesterol diet. Old mice had significantly higher levels of oxidative stress and a decrease of antioxidant superoxide dismutase in the brain than the young mice. The old exercise trained mice had less oxidative stress and inflammation than the old sedentary mice, as demonstrated by an decrease in MDA, TNFα, NF‐κB, and IL‐1β. Plasma oxidative stress was positively correlated with brain oxidative stress and inflammation. In conclusion, these results suggest that the overall increase in systemic oxidative stress and inflammation inherent in atherosclerosis could lead to further brain oxidative stress and inflammation, which is further exacerbated by aging and a sedentary lifestyle. In addition, the decrease in oxidative stress through exercise training could improve systemic and brain inflammation in this animal model atherosclerosis.