The Effect of Aerobic Training With the Consumption of Probiotics on the Myelination of Nerve Fibers in Cuprizone-induced Demyelination Mouse Model of Multiple Sclerosis

Extensive human and animal research shows that exercise has beneficial effects on multiple clinical outcomes for patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS). This research was conducted to examine the effect of aerobic exercise with probiotic consumption on the myelination of nerve fibers in a cuprizone-induced demyelination mouse model of MS. 

Rats exposed to cuprizone (CPZ) for 13 weeks were subjected to motor and balance tests in week 5. They (5 people in each group) were assigned to five groups of control (C), MS, MS with exercise (MS+Exe), MS with probiotic (MS+Pro), and MS with probiotic and exercise (MS+Pro+Exe) randomly. The exercise groups conducted aerobic exercises 5 days a week for 60 days. The rats received probiotics by gavage. Performance and balance tests were repeated when the eight-week protocol of exercise and probiotic consumption was finished. One day after these interventions, they were sacrificed to undergo biochemical and molecular biology assays.

The results showed that Myelin basic protein (MBP) was increased in the MS+Pro+Exe, MS+Pro, and MS+Exe compared to the MS group (P<0.05). 
The nestin mRNA showed an increase in MS+Pro+Exe, MS+Exe, and MS+Pro groups compared to the MS group, but this increase was not significant in MS+Pro+Exe and MS+Exe groups compared to the control and MS groups (P>0.05). 

According to the results, lifestyle interventions can effectively alleviate demyelinating-inflammatory processes that happen in the brains of MS patients.