Effect of 8 Weeks High-intensity Interval Training on camK and PGC-1 Gene Expressions in Rats with Myocardial Infarction

One of the side effects of myocardial infarction is to increase slow-twitch to fast-twitch fibers phenotypic changes due to decreased mitochondrial density. Mitochondrial biogenesis with its ability to create new mitochondria and increase mitochondrial density can minimize these complications. One of the most effective genes in the mitochondrial biogenesis is the camK and PGC-1α. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of eight weeks of high-intensity interval training on the expression of camK and PGC-1α genes in the rats with myocardial infarction.

In this development research, 12 Wistar male rats with myocardial infarction were divided into experimental (30 minutes on a treadmill regularly and 4 minutes running with the severity of 90-85% VO2max and two minutes of active recovery with 50% -60% VO2max three days a week for eight weeks) and control(without exercise) groups. The expression of camK and PGC-1α genes was studied with Real-time PCR as an effective factor in downstream mitochondrial biogenesis.

The results showed that the expression of camK and PGC-1α genes increased significantly (P =0.001).

Generally, eight weeks of high-intensity interval training by increasing the expression of camK and PGC-1α genes which are effective in the mitochondrial biogenesis process, can improve mitochondrial function in ST in rats with myocardial infarction and improve their quality of life.