Effect of Regular Swimming Exercise on Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Cytokines in Healthy and Diabetic Rats

Regular aerobic exercises such as swimming and treadmill running have different physiological effects compared with strenuous exercises. The aim of the present study was to evaluatethe effect of regular swimming exercise on plasma levels of TNF-α, IL-1β and of IL-6 cytokines in healthy and diabetic rats. In this study, 40 Wistar rats (250-300 g) were randomly divided into 4 groups, 10 in each group. Twenty animals were made diabetic by a single injection of streptozotocin (50 mg/kg, ip) and 20 animals remained as non diabetics. The exercise protocol was swimming (1 h per day, and 5 days per week) for 8 weeks. The IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α were measured before and after the exercise period. The findings of this study showed that the level of IL-6 was increased significantly after a period of regular swimming exercise in both diabetic and healthy rats in both diabetic and healthy rats; an increase of 23 times and 9 times, respectively (P<0.0005). There was no a significant increase in the levels of IL-1β and TNF-α levels after exercise According to the findings of this study, regular exercise increases plasma level of IL-6 and this increment is much higher in diabetic rats. Regular long-term swimming training is beneficial in diabetic and healthy individuals.