The Effect of High-Intensity Interval Training on the Amount of BECLIN1/2 Family Autophagy Proteins in the Left Ventricle of the Heart in Rats with Type 1 Diabetes

Several proteins regulate the autophagy pathway, and one of the most important regulators is the BECLIN family proteins. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the effect of high-intensity interval training on the amount of BECLIN1/2 family autophagy proteins in the left ventricle of the heart of rats with type 1 diabetes. 

In this experimental study, 18 three-month-old male Sprague Dawley rats with an average weight of 300±20 grams were selected. 12 rats were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes through intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin solution. These rats were randomly divided into two groups, diabetic exercise, and diabetic control; A healthy control group was also considered; The HIIT was performed for 6 weeks and 4 sessions each week including 5 bursts of 4 minutes with an intensity equal to 85-95% of the maximum speed and 3-minute active rest periods with an intensity equal to 50-60% of the maximum speed. Data analysis was done through one-way ANOVA and Tukey's post hoc tests in SPSS version 26 software. A significance level of 0.05 was considered.

The intracellular content of BECLIN1 and BECLIN2 protein showed a significant decrease between the research groups in the left ventricle of the heart after six weeks of HIIT (p=0.0001).

It seems that BECLIN family proteins are decreased by HIIT and this can decrease the autophagy mechanism in cardiac cells.