Voluntary exercise and cardiac remodeling in a myocardial infarction model

• Main Authors: Shahi Hamad Al, Kadoguchi Tomoyasu, Shimada Kazunori, Fukao Kosuke, Matsushita Satoshi, Aikawa Tatsuro, Ouchi Shohei, Shiozawa Tomoyuki, Takahashi Shuhei, Sato-Okabayashi Yayoi, Akita Koji, Isoda Kikuo, Miyazaki Tetsuro, Daida Hiroyuki
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: De Gruyter 2020-06-01
• Series: Open Medicine
• Subjects: voluntary exercise; myocardial infarction; cardiac remodeling; inflammation; myokine
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1515/med-2020-0109

We investigated the effects of voluntary exercise after myocardial infarction (MI) on cardiac function, remodeling, and inflammation. Male C57BL/6J mice were divided into the following four groups: sedentary + sham (Sed-Sh), sedentary + MI (Sed-MI), exercise + sham (Ex-Sh), and exercise + MI (Ex-MI). MI induction was performed by ligation of the left coronary artery. Exercise consisting of voluntary wheel running started after the operation and continued for 4 weeks. The Ex-MI mice had significantly increased cardiac function compared with the Sed-MI mice. The Ex-MI mice showed significantly reduced expression levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and IL-10 in the infarcted area of the left ventricle compared with the Sed-MI mice. In the Ex-MI mice, the expression levels of fibrosis-related genes including collagen I and III were decreased compared to the Sed-MI mice, and the expression levels of IL-1β, IL-6, follistatin-like 1, fibroblast growth factor 21, and mitochondrial function-related genes were significantly elevated in skeletal muscle compared with the Sed mice. The plasma levels of IL-6 were also significantly elevated in the Ex-MI group compared with the Sed-MI groups. These findings suggest that voluntary exercise after MI may improve in cardiac remodeling associated with anti-inflammatory effects in the myocardium and myokine production in the skeletal muscles.