Cortical Excitability, Cognitive Functions, and Peripheral Signaling Molecules

NCT05689606 | Completed DMC

• 1 other identifier: 12091985
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 23
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

It is widely known that exercise creates structural and functional changes in the brain. Synaptic plasticity develops through exercise, thus improving brain functions. It is suggested that skeletal muscle contraction and peripheral signal molecules secreted from various tissues, especially skeletal muscle, contribute to exercise's effect on the brain's structure and function. These signals synthesized and released from skeletal muscle are called myokines. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and Cathepsin B are two of these myokines, which have been reported to cross the blood-brain barrier following secretion in the periphery and affect the structure and functions of the brain. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) allows to evaluate the synaptic plasticity responses of the motor cortex to exercise, while cognitive function responses are evaluated via cognitive tests. Additionally, exercise type and intensity influence the responses of cortical excitability and cognitive function. This research proposal aims to investigate how acute high-intensity intermittent exercise (HIIT) changes primary motor cortex (M1) excitability, M1-related cognitive functions, and peripheral BDNF and Cathepsin B levels in healthy sedentary adults and to investigate the relationship between these neurophysiological parameters. All parameters will be measured before and after the acute exercise. M1 excitability will be evaluated through resting motor threshold, short interval intracortical inhibition, and input-output curve measurements. Cognitive functions will be evaluated through mental rotation and working memory tasks, and peripheral signal responses will be measured by serum levels of BDNF and Cathepsin B. Our hypotheses are: 1) Acute HIIT will increase peripheral BDNF and CTSB level, cortical excitability, and M1-specific cognitive function performance. 2) M1 excitability, cognitive function performance, and peripheral BDNF and CTSB increase will be related following exercise. Our findings will have the potential to be a guide for the integration of exercise into daily life and will provide cortical and peripheral data on the neurophysiological basis of the relationship between exercise and cognition.

Conditions

Healthy

Keywords

HIIT; TMS; BDNF; Cathepsin B; cognitive performance

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (7)

• Resting motor threshold

  The amount of transcranial magnetic stimulation machine output necessary to produce a motor-evoked potential that exceeds a defined peak-to-peak amplitude. Lower scores mean a better outcome.

  Change from Baseline resting motor threshold immediately following acute exercise

• Short interval intracortical inhibition

  The relative amplitude reduction of motor evoked potentials by subthreshold conditioning stimuli.

  Change from Baseline short interval intracortical inhibition immediately following acute exercise

• Input output curve

  The input-output curve is a sigmoid-shaped relation between the MEP amplitude at incremented TMS intensities. Higher scores mean a better outcome.

  Change from Baseline input output curve immediately following acute exercise

• Working memory

  The small amount of information that can be held in mind and used in the execution of cognitive tasks. Higher scores mean a better outcome.

  Change from Baseline working memory score immediately following acute exercise

• Serum BDNF

  Serum level of BDNF. Higher scores mean a better outcome.

  Change from Baseline serum BDNF immediately following acute exercise

• Mental rotation

  The ability to transform a mental representation of an object so as to accurately predict how the object would look from a different angle. Higher scores mean a better outcome.

  Change from Baseline mental rotation score immediately following acute exercise

• Serum Cathepsin B

  Serum level of Cathepsin B. Higher scores mean a better outcome.

  Change from Baseline serum Cathepsin B immediately following acute exercise

Study Arms (2)

Exercise group

EXPERIMENTAL

The exercise group performs acute high-intensity interval training.

Behavioral: Exercise

Control group

NO INTERVENTION

The Control group includes the same participants. In this session, they do not exercise, and they watch a nature documentary.

Interventions

Exercise BEHAVIORAL

Exercise includes acute high-intensity interval training.

Exercise group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 20 Years - 30 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Being right-handed
• Aged between 20 and 30 years
• Being sedentary

You may not qualify if:

• having intracranial implants
• history of psychiatric or neurological disease, seizure, any serious medical condition or pregnancy

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Ankara City Hospital Bilkent: lead
• Gazi University: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Ankara City Hospital

Ankara, Turkey (Türkiye)

Location

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Exercise

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Motor Activity; Movement; Musculoskeletal Physiological Phenomena; Musculoskeletal and Neural Physiological Phenomena

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: DOUBLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 10, 2022
• First Posted: January 19, 2023
• Study Start: October 7, 2022
• Primary Completion: February 1, 2023
• Study Completion: April 1, 2023
• Last Updated: August 5, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-08

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

TU (1)