The Effect of High-Intensity Intermittent Training with Spirulina Powder on Changes in Gene Expression of Inflammation and Atrophy in the Soleus Muscle of Obese Elderly Diabetic Rats

Exercise is a suggested way to reduce inflammation and atrophy and control diabetes. Spirulina supplement also has anti-inflammatory effects. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of eight weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) with spirulina on changes in the expression of genes of inflammation and atrophy in the soleus muscle of obese elderly diabetic rats.

In this experimental study, 40 old male Wistar rats (20-month-old) with an average weight of 280-325 g became obese after purchase for 8 weeks on a high-fat diet, and then became diabetic by intraperitoneal injection of streptozocin (40 mg/kg). They were divided in 5 equal groups of HIIT, HIIT + supplement, supplement, sham and control. They did 5 sessions of activities on treadmill with an intensity of 90% VO2max per week for eight weeks to perform HIIT in training groups, and used spirulina consumption (50 mg/kg body weight) as supplementation on training days. Expression of genes were measured using real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). One-way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc test were used to analyze the data.

Induction of diabetes significantly increased the expression of TWEAK, Fn14, and atrogin-1 genes in study groups compared to controls; but exercise and supplementation significantly reduced these variables more in exercise and supplementation groups compared to other groups. After training, body mass in HIIT, supplement, and HIIT + supplement groups decreased significantly compared to sham and control groups; and soleus muscle mass increased significantly only in HIIT and HIIT + supplement groups compared to control group.

According to the results of HIIT + supplementation, it is recommended as an effective method to reduce atrophy and improve muscle health in diabetic elderly.