Comparison of the effect of four weeks of aerobic and resistance exercise on upregulated fractalkine and CX3CR1 levels in the brains of mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research Paper I Open Access I Released under (CC BY-NC 4.0) license

Authors

1 Department of Exercise Physiology, Faculty of Physical Education and Exercise Sciences, University of Tehran, Iran

2 PhD student in Exercise Physiology, Kish international campus, University of Tehran, Kish, Iran

3 Professor, Exercise Physiology Department, Faculty of Sports Sciences and Health, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Background& purpose: The CX3CL1/CX3CR1 Pathway, a Key Component of the Brain’s Immune System, Plays a Crucial Role in the Progression of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). The aim of this study was to compare the effects of four weeks of aerobic and resistance exercise on the expression of CX3CL1 and CX3CR1 genes in the brains of mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Methods: Forty female mice (8 weeks old, 18 ± 2 g) were randomly assigned to four groups: healthy control, EAE, EAE + resistance exercise, and EAE + aerobic exercise. EAE was induced, and the training groups performed swimming and ladder-climbing exercises for 4 weeks, 5 days per week, 30 minutes per day. Forty-eight hours after the final exercise session, the mice were anesthetized, and tissue samples were collected. Gene expression was assessed using the Real-time PCR method. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Tukey's post hoc test (P<0.05). Results: The findings revealed that the expression level of CX3CL1 significantly increased in both the EAE + resistance and EAE + aerobic exercise groups compared to the EAE group (P≤0.05), with no significant difference between the two exercise groups (P=0.97). Additionally, a significant difference was observed between the healthy control and EAE groups (P=0.001). For CX3CR1, significant increases were noted in the exercise groups compared to the EAE control group (P≤0.05); however, no significant differences were observed when compared to the healthy control group (P>0.05). Similarly, no significant difference was found between the resistance and aerobic exercise groups (P=0.99).

Conclusions: This study suggests that regular exercise may modulate the expression of CX3CL1/CX3CR1 genes in the brains of EAE mice and could play a potential role in the management of multiple sclerosis.

Keywords

Main Subjects

Journal of Applied Health Studies in Sport Physiology

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 31 January 2026

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 13 July 2025
  • Revise Date: 30 December 2025
  • Accept Date: 31 January 2026

Share

How to cite

Statistics