Effect of short duration moderate intensity physical activity on glycemic control and antioxidant status of prediabetic population.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the effect of moderate-intensity physical activity on glycemic control and antioxidant status in the prediabetic population. METHODS: This experimental study was carried out in the Physiology Department, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Khyber Medical University, Peshawar, Pakistan. A total of 50 adult prediabetic subjects having 22 females and 28 males with the age range of 18 to 35 years were included. Diagnosis of prediabetes was made by glycated hemoglobin falling in the range of 5.7-6.4%, and impaired fasting glucose (100-125 mg/dL). Anthropometric measurements and biochemical assays were carried out at pre and post-exercise intervention. The participants performed moderate exercise of 30 min with heart rate max 7% ± 5% for 5 days a week for 8 weeks, monitored with pedometer. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was carried out for individual and total antioxidants. RESULTS: Anthropometric parameters showed a significant decrease at post-exercise analysis. Similar changes were observed for fasting glucose (p<0.001) and glycated hemoglobin (p<0.001). Slight increase in uric acid (p<0.005) and total antioxidant concentration (p<0.001) were found. However, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, vitamin C, and nitric oxide decreased (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Moderate physical activity for 8 weeks significantly reduced the individual antioxidant levels, nominal increase in total antioxidant capacity and uric acid, and there was an explicit decline in the anthropometric and diabetic profile of prediabetic population.

Ghrelin is a persistent biomarker for chronic stress exposure in adolescent rats and humans.

Prolonged stressor exposure in adolescence enhances the risk of developing stress-sensitive mental illnesses, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for many years following exposure cessation, but the biological underpinnings of this long-term vulnerability are unknown. We show that severe stressor exposure increased circulating levels of the hormone acyl-ghrelin in adolescent rats for at least 130 days and in adolescent humans for at least 4.5 years. Using a rodent model of longitudinal PTSD vulnerability in which rodents with a history of stressor exposure during adolescence display enhanced fear in response to fear conditioning administered weeks after stressor exposure ends, we show that systemic delivery of a ghrelin receptor antagonist for 4 weeks surrounding stressor exposure (2 weeks during and 2 weeks following) prevented stress-enhanced fear memory. These data suggest that protracted exposure to elevated acyl-ghrelin levels mediates a persistent vulnerability to stress-enhanced fear after stressor exposure ends.