Older Adults Who Maintained a Regular Physical Exercise Routine before the Pandemic Show Better Immune Response to Vaccination for COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: In this study, we aimed to investigate the specific-antibody response to the COVID-19 vaccination and the immunophenotyping of T cells in older adults who were engaged or not in an exercise training program before the pandemic. METHODS: Ninety-three aged individuals (aged between 60 and 85 years) were separated into 3 groups: practitioners of physical exercise vaccinated with CoronaVac (PE-Co, n = 46), or vaccinated with ChadOx-1 (PE-Ch, n = 23), and non-practitioners vaccinated with ChadOx-1 (NPE-Ch, n = 24). Blood samples were collected before (pre) and 30 days after vaccination with the second vaccine dose. RESULTS: Higher IgG levels and immunogenicity were found in the PE-Ch and NPE-Ch groups, whereas increased IgA levels were found only in the PE-Ch group post-vaccination. The PE-Co group showed a positive correlation between the IgA and IgG values, and lower IgG levels post-vaccination were associated with age. Significant alterations in the percentage of naive (CD28+CD57-), double-positive (CD28+CD57+), and senescent (CD28-CD57+) CD4+ T and CD8+ T cells were found post-vaccination, particularly in the PE-Ch group. CONCLUSIONS: The volunteers vaccinated with the ChadOx-1 presented not only a better antibody response but also a significant modulation in the percentage of T cell profiles, mainly in the previously exercised group.

Older Women Who Practiced Physical Exercises before the COVID-19 Pandemic Present Metabolic Alterations and Worsened Functional Physical Capacity after One Year of Social Isolation.

BACKGROUND: Because the consequences of the lifestyle changes in older adults associated with the social isolation imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic are not fully understood, here, we investigated the effects of one year of social isolation imposed by COVID-19 on the metabolic parameters and functional physical capacity of older women who regularly practiced physical exercises before the pandemic. METHODS: Systemic lipid and protein profiles, estimated creatinine clearance (ECC), and functional physical capacity (FPC) were assessed before (January-February 2020) and 12 months after social isolation in 30 older women (mean age 73.77 ± 6.22) who were engaged in a combined-exercise training program for at least 3 years before the COVID-19 pandemic. RESULTS: In this group, we observed increased plasma levels of triglycerides and creatinine, an increase in the time necessary to perform gait speed and time-up-and-go tests, and reduced muscle strength assessed by the handgrip test and ECC post-COVID-19 pandemic relative to values recorded pre-pandemic. In addition, we observed significant correlations (both negative and positive) between anthropometric, some metabolic parameters, and physical tests. CONCLUSION: One year of interruption of physical exercise practice imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic significantly altered some systemic metabolic parameters and worsened ECC and FPC in older women.

Respiratory and TCA cycle activities affect S. cerevisiae lifespan, response to caloric restriction and mtDNA stability.

We studied the importance of respiratory fitness in S. cerevisiae lifespan, response to caloric restriction (CR) and mtDNA stability. Mutants harboring mtDNA instability and electron transport defects do not respond to CR, while tricarboxylic acid cycle mutants presented extended lifespans due to CR. Interestingly, mtDNA is unstable in cells lacking dihydrolipoyl dehydrogenase under CR conditions, and cells lacking aconitase under standard conditions (both enzymes are components of the TCA and mitochondrial nucleoid). Altogether, our data indicate that respiratory integrity is required for lifespan extension by CR and that mtDNA stability is regulated by nucleoid proteins in a glucose-sensitive manner.