A comparative study on the effects of low-intensity interval training with limited blood flow and high-intensity interval training on some antioxidant enzymes in young rats

Abstract

Background: Doing exercise causes a series of physiological changes in the body. Thus, this study aimed to compare the effects of low-intensity interval training (LIIT) with blood flow restriction (BFR) and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels in the liver of young rats.

Methods: Young male rats (n = 48) aged 8-10 weeks with an approximate weight of 195-240 g were randomly divided into six groups of LIIT + BFR, BFR without exercise, sham (SH) with only skin surgery, HIIT, LIIT without BFR, and control (CTL). Experimental groups underwent training for 8 weeks. Forty-eight h after the last training session, the rats were sacrificed to evaluate the antioxidant enzymes, their livers were removed for laboratory tests and immediately frozen in liquid nitrogen at −80°C. The samples were examined by an ELISA kit. Data normality, homogeneity of variances, hypothesis tests, and differences between groups were determined by the Shapiro-Wilk test, Levene's test, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Tukey's post-hoc test (P < 0.05), respectively.

Results: The level of CAT was not significantly different between the experimental groups. There was a significant increase in GPX in the LIIT + BFR (P < 0.02) and BFR (P < 0.01) groups compared to the HIIT group. SOD significantly decreased in the HIIT group compared to the LIIT (P ˂ 0.02), CTL, and SH groups (P ˂ 0.002).

Conclusion: According to the results, the level of CAT was not markedly different between the experimental groups and there was a considerable rise in GPX in the LIIT + BFR (P ˂ 0.02) and BFR (P ˂ 0.01) groups compared to the HIIT group. A significant decrease in SOD was observed in the HIIT group compared to the LIIT group (P ˂ 0.02) and the CTL and SH groups (P < 0.002). Overall, LIIT + BFR do not have a detrimental effect on the body's antioxidant system compared to HIIT. However, more research is needed to obtain definitive results.