Effect of Vigorous Aerobic Exercise on Serum Levels of SIRT1, FGF21 and Fetuin A in Women with Type II Diabetes

Sirtuin (SIRT), Fibroblast Growth Factor21 (FGF21) and Fetuin A are proteins that cause a wide range of metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). On the other hand, regular physical activity is known to play a key role in prevention and management of T2DM. Thus, this study investigated the effect of vigorous aerobic exercise on serum levels of metabolic parameters including SIRT1, FGF21 and Fetuin A in women with T2DM.
The study was performed on 28 randomly selected women with T2DM who were divided into an exercise group and a control group. The training intervention consisted eight weeks of vigorous aerobic exercise (three times a week at 70-80% of maximum heart rate). The serum levels of SIRT1, FGF21 and Fetuin A were evaluated before the first session and 48 hours after the last session. Paired sample t-test and independent t-test were used to analyze within and between group differences, respectively. All statistical analyses were performed in SPSS (version 19) at significance of 0.05.
The eight-week aerobic training caused a significant reduction in body weight, body mass index, insulin resistance, low-density lipoprotein, fasting blood sugar, triglycerides and Fetuin A of women with T2DM. In addition, it caused a significant increase in SIRT1 and FGF21 levels. There was no significant difference in the level of high-density lipoprotein and cholesterol between the two groups.
As a non-pharmacological therapy, regular aerobic exercise might improve the metabolic parameters, SIRT1, FGF21, and Fetuin A in women with T2DM.