Role of PGC-1α in exercise training- and resveratrol-induced prevention of age-associated inflammation.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Age-related metabolic diseases are often associated with low-grade inflammation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of the transcriptional co-activator PGC-1α in the potential beneficial effects of exercise training and/or resveratrol in the prevention of age-associated low-grade inflammation. To address this, a long-term voluntary exercise training and resveratrol supplementation study was conducted.

EXPERIMENTAL SETUP: Three month old whole body PGC-1α KO and WT mice were randomly assigned to four groups: untrained chow-fed, untrained chow-fed supplemented with resveratrol, chow-fed voluntarily exercise trained and chow-fed supplemented with resveratrol and voluntarily exercise trained. The intervention lasted 12 months and three month old untrained chow-fed mice served as young controls.

RESULTS: Voluntary exercise training prevented an age-associated increase (p<0.05) in systemic IL-6 and adiposity in WT mice. PGC-1α expression was required for a training-induced prevention of an age-associated increase (p<0.05) in skeletal muscle TNFα protein. Independently of PGC-1α, both exercise training and resveratrol prevented an age-associated increase (p<0.05) in skeletal muscle protein carbonylation.

CONCLUSION: The present findings highlight that exercise training is a more effective intervention than resveratrol supplementation in reducing age-associated inflammation and that PGC-1α in part is required for the exercise training-induced anti-inflammatory effects.