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Long-Term Exercise Training Selectively Alters Serum Cytokines Involved in Fever

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Nursing, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, pjrowsey{at}unc.edu

Bonnie L. Metzger, PhD, RN, FAAN

University of Michigan, School of Nursing, Ann Arbor, Michigan

John Carlson, MS

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Nursing, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Christopher J. Gordon, PhD

Neurotoxicology Division, National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina

Long-term exercise training selectively alters serum cytokines involved in fever. Chronic exercise training has a number of effects on the immune system that may mimic the physiological response to fever. Female rats that voluntarily exercise on running wheels develop an elevated daytime core temperature after several weeks of training. It remains to be seen whether the elevation in daytime temperature involves inflammatory patterns characteristic of an infectious fever. We assessed whether chronic exercise training in the rat would alter levels of cytokines involved in fever. Female Sprague Dawley rats at 45 days of age weighing 90—110 g were divided into two groups (exercise and sedentary) and housed at an ambient temperature of 22^°C. Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-10 (IL-10), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-), iron, and zinc levels were analyzed. Rats underwent 8 weeks of exercise on running wheels. Exercise led to altered levels of some key cytokines that are involved in fever. Exercise animals had significantly higher IL-1β levels and lower IL-10 levels compared to sedentary animals. Although IL-6 levels were slightly lower in the exercise animals, these levels were not significantly affected by training. TNF- activity was similar in the two groups. Training also led to a slight increase in serum zinc and decrease in serum unsaturated iron binding capacity (UIBC). The data suggest that chronic exercise training evokes immune responses that mimic some, but not all, aspects of fever. This may explain why exercise leads to elevated daytime core temperature.

Key Words: cytokines • exercise • fever

This version was published on April 1, 2009

Biological Research For Nursing, Vol. 10, No. 4, 374-380 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1099800408329409


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