Journal Article

Cerebral blood flow and arterial transit time responses to exercise training in older adults

Feron, Jack, Segaert, Katrien, Berntsen, Sveinung, Lucas, Samuel J E, Mullinger, Karen J, Gilani, Ahmed, Joyce, Kelsey E, Rahman, Foyzul, Fosstveit, Sindre H, Lohne-Seiler, Hilde

2024

Overview

•Home-based high-intensity interval training increases cardiorespiratory fitness in older adults.•High cardiorespiratory fitness gains were associated with cerebral blood flow reductions.•Exercise training did not affect arterial transit time or cognitive function in older adults. Brain vascular health worsens with age, as is made evident by resting grey matter cerebral blood flow (CBFGM) reductions and lengthening arterial transit time (ATTGM). Exercise training can improve aspects of brain health in older adults, yet its effects on CBFGM and ATTGM remain unclear. This randomised controlled trial assessed responses of CBFGM and ATTGM to a 26 week exercise intervention in 65 healthy older adults (control: n = 33, exercise: n = 32, aged 60–81 years), including whether changes in CBFGM or ATTGM were associated with changes in cognitive functions. Multiple-delay pseudo-continuous arterial spin labelling data were used to estimate resting global and regional CBFGM and ATTGM. Results showed no between-group differences in CBFGM or ATTGM following the intervention. However, exercise participants with the greatest cardiorespiratory gains (n = 17; ∆V̇O2peak >2 mL/kg/min) experienced global CBFGM reductions (-4.0 [-7.3, -0.8] mL/100 g/min). Cognitive functions did not change in either group and changes were not associated with changes in CBFGM or ATTGM. Our findings indicate that exercise training in older adults may induce global CBFGM reductions when high cardiorespiratory fitness gains are induced, but this does not appear to affect cognitive functions.

• Publisher: Elsevier Inc,Elsevier Limited,Elsevier
• Subject: Aged / Aged, 80 and over / Ageing / Aging - physiology / Arterial transit time / Blood flow / Blood pressure / Brain - blood supply / Brain - physiology / Brain health / Cardiorespiratory fitness / Cerebral blood flow / Cerebrovascular Circulation - physiology / Cognition - physiology / Cognitive ability / Cognitive function / Exercise / Exercise - physiology / Exercise training / Female / Fitness training programs / Gray Matter - blood supply / Gray Matter - diagnostic imaging / Gray Matter - physiology / Heart rate / Hemodynamics / Humans / Interval training / Intervention / Labeling / Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Male / Measurement techniques / Middle Aged / Older people / Physical fitness / Physical training / Regions / Spin labeling / Spin Labels / Substantia grisea