Lifelong exercise, but not short-term high-intensity interval training, increases GDF11, a marker of successful aging: a preliminary investigation

Elliott, Bradley T.; Herbert, Peter; Sculthorpe, Nicholas; Grace, Fergal M.; Stratton, Daniel; Hayes, Lawrence D.

Abstract

Lifelong exercise is associated with regulation of skeletal mass and function, reductions in frailty, and successful aging. Yet, the influence of exercise on myostatin and myostatin-interacting factors is relatively under examined in older males. Therefore, we investigated whether serum total myostatin, free myostatin, follistatin, and growth and differentiation factor 11 (GDF11) were altered following high-intensity interval training (HIIT) in a group of 13 lifelong sedentary (SED; 64 [6] years) and 11 lifelong exercising (LEX; 62 [6] years) older males. SED follistatin was moderately greater than LEX pre-HIIT (Cohen's d = 0.66), and was largely greater post-HIIT (Cohen's d = 1.22). The HIIT-induced increase in follistatin was large in SED (Cohen's d = 0.82) and absent in LEX (Cohen's d = 0.03). GDF11 was higher in LEX pre-HIIT (Cohen's d = 0.49) and post-HIIT (Cohen's d = 0.63) compared to SED. HIIT resulted in no change to GDF11 in LEX or SED (Cohen's d = 0.00– 0.03). Peak power output and GDF11 were correlated (r = 0.603), independent of grouping. Differences in GDF11 with lifelong exercise training, paired with the correlation between GDF11 and peak power output, suggested that GDF11 may be a relevant myostatin-interacting peptide to successful aging in humans, and strategies to maintain this need to be further explored.

Citation

Elliott, B. T., Herbert, P., Sculthorpe, N., Grace, F. M., Stratton, D., & Hayes, L. D. (2017). Lifelong exercise, but not short-term high-intensity interval training, increases GDF11, a marker of successful aging: a preliminary investigation. Physiological Reports, 5(13), e13343. https://doi.org/10.14814/phy2.13343

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 9, 2017
• Online Publication Date: Jul 12, 2017
• Publication Date: 2017-07
• Deposit Date: Jul 4, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 12, 2018
• Journal: Physiol Rep
• Print ISSN: 2051-817x
• Electronic ISSN: 2051-817X
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 5
• Issue: 13
• Article Number: e13343
• Pages: e13343
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.14814/phy2.13343
• Keywords: Aging, exercise, follistatin, GDF11, HIIT,; myostatin; Correspondence
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/910371
• Publisher URL: https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.14814/phy2.13343
• Related Public URLs: http://westminsterresearch.wmin.ac.uk/19281/