Changes in Asprosin, spexin, and leptin following circuit resistance training with high and moderate intensities in men with type II diabetes

 Adipose tissue serves as a source for the release of adipokines, including Asprosin, Spexin, and Leptin, which play a role in regulating glucose metabolism and interacting with insulin. In type II diabetes, the disruption of these hormones affect insulin sensitivity and glucose metabolism. Regular exercise is considered an effective method for the non-pharmacological prevention and treatment of type II diabetes. The objective of this study was to investigate the responses of asprosin, spexin, and leptin to eight weeks of circuit resistance training with moderate and high intensities in men with type II diabetes.

In this semi-experimental study with a pre-test/post-test design, 36 men with type II diabetes (age, 40.3 ± 3.6 years) were randomly divided into three groups: a control group, a moderate-intensity circuit resistance training group (MICT), and a high-intensity circuit resistance training group (HICT). The training groups followed a circuit resistance training protocol for eight weeks, three sessions per week. In the MICT group, exercises were performed in three sets of 13 repetitions at 60% of one repetition maximum (1RM), while in the HICT group, exercise protocol encompassed three sets of 10 repetitions at 80% of 1RM. Blood samples were taken before and after the intervention to evaluate serum levels of asprosin, spexin, and leptin by using the ELISA technique. Additionally, the HOMA-IR index was calculated to assess insulin resistance. Data analyses were conducted using paired t-tests and one-way ANOVA with Tukey's post hoc test, considering a significance level of p < 0.05.

Data analyses indicated that eight weeks of circuit resistance training at moderate and high intensities significantly reduced body weight (p = 0.0001), asprosin (p = 0.0001), leptin (p = 0.0001) and insulin resistance index (p = 0.0001). Additionally, serum levels of spexin was significantly increased (p = 0.0001). When responses to two exercise protocols were compared, the high-intensity training had a greater impact on all the studied variables.

This study demonstrated that eight weeks of circuit resistance training at high and moderate intensities led to positive changes in the levels of adipokines such as Asprosin, Spexin, and Leptin, which were associated with improved insulin resistance. It appears that high-intensity training had a greater impact than MICT.