The Effect of a Period of Discontinuous Endurance Exercise on ICAM-1 and Lipid Profile of Non-athletic Male Students

Background and It has been suggested that intracellular adhesion molecules (sICAM-1)، as a new inflammatory marker، are more precise and sensitive markers in predicting cardiovascular diseases، compared with traditional predictive markers. The purpose of this investigation was to study the effect of discontinuous endurance exercise on sICAM-1 and lipid profile (LDL-C، HDL-C، TG، and TC) of non-athletic male students and to survey the correlation between changes of these variables. This experimental study involved twenty non-athletic male students who signed the written informed consent، and were randomly assigned into experimental (n=12) and control (n=8) groups. The exercise protocol was a graded program، to be performed for 8 weeks three times per week with specific intensity and duration. Blood samples were taken before the first session and after the last session، with 14 hours fasting. Data were analyzed in SPSS 16 using independent and dependent t-test، and Pearson correlation coefficient to determine the correlation of the variables. Level of statistical significance was set at α>0. 05. Eight weeks of discontinuous endurance exercise caused 14% decline in sICAM-1 (p=0. 0001)، 6% in TC (p=0. 001)، 10% in LDL-C (p=0. 0001)، 40% in TG (p=0. 0001) and 23% increase in HDL-C (p=0. 001) in the experimental group. However، there were no significant correlation between sICAM-1 alteration and changes of traditional predictors of cardiovascular diseases (LDL-C، HDL-C، TG، and TC) (p>0. 05). Eight weeks of discontinuous endurance exercise may reduce sICAM-1 and improve the lipid profile. These changes can play effective roles in the prevention، control and treatment of atherosclerosis.