Impact of Chronic Moderate Exercise on Immune Cells and Cytokine Levels in Rats: Focus on the Endocannabinergic Pathway.

Although the modulation of immunity by exercise has been a long-studied paradigm, the molecular pathways connecting the two are still not fully understood. Regular moderate aerobic exercise is associated with improved health and directly impacts the immune system by changing the proportion of cell subpopulations, their function, and interleukin production. The endocannabinoid system has gained importance as an immune modulator, affected by moderate aerobic promoting the production of endocannabinoids, which are ligands of the cannabinoid receptors (CBRs) expressed on the surface of all immune cells. Our group previously reported a reduction of lymphocytic populations in the spleen of chronically exercised rats, accompanied by an increase in CBR expression. Given the complex and compartmentalized nature of the immune system, we decided to study the effects of chronic exercise on the proportion of peripheral blood mononuclear cells, serum interleukins, and the expression of CBRs on these cells. Overall, our results indicate that chronic exercise decreases the proportion of T helper and Tγδ cells but increases the expression of cannabinoids (CBR1) on T helper and natural killer cells, and the production of interleukins, including IL-1ß, interferon-gamma, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, IL-10, and IL-4, suggesting higher reactivity and efficiency from the immune system conferred by exercise.

Chronic exercise modulates the cellular immunity and its cannabinoid receptors expression.

The impact of performing exercise on the immune system presents contrasting effects on health when performed at different intensities. In addition, the consequences of performing chronic exercise have not been sufficiently studied in contrast to the effects of acute bouts of exercise. The porpoise of this work was to determine the effect that a popular exercise regimen (chronic/moderate/aerobic exercise) has on the proportion of different immune cell subsets, their function and if it affects the cannabinoid system with potentially functional implications on the immune system. A marked increase in several immune cell subsets and their expression of cannabinoid receptors was expected, as well as an enhanced proliferative and cytotoxic activity by total splenocytes in exercised animals. For this study male Wistar rats performed treadmill running 5 times a week for a period of 10 weeks, at moderate intensity. Our results showed a significant decrease in lymphocyte subpopulations (CD4+, Tγδ, and CD45 RA+ cells) and an increase in the cannabinoid receptors expression in those same cell. Although functional assays did not reveal any variation in total immunoglobulin production or NK cells cytotoxic activity, proliferative capability of total splenocytes increased in trained rats. Our results further support the notion that exercise affects the immunological system and extends the description of underlying mechanisms mediating such effects. Altogether, our results contribute to the understanding of the benefits of exercise on the practitioner´s general health.

[Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFPEF). Impact of change in the paradigm of isolated diastolic dysfunction]. / Insuficiencia cardiaca con fraccion de expulsion preservada (ICFEP). Impacto del cambio en el paradigma de la disfunción diastólica aislada.

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction is a significant and growing public health problem, since it currently represents half of all patients with heart failure. Despite improvements in the understanding of the disease, there is no benefit form treatments tested at all. Advances in diagnostic imaging and invasive evaluation algorithms will allow a more accurate and early diagnosis so that treatment of earliest forms in the progression of the disease are applied since the potential for benefit may be higher. Although important progress has been made in our understanding of the pathophysiology, cardiac catheterization, and cellular of diastolic failure mechanisms and not diastolic mechanisms of disease, further research is required promptly to determine how best to address these anomalies to reduce the significant burden of morbidity and mortality in this form of heart failure, which is reaching pandemic proportions.

Niveles de antitrombina III y fibrinógeno en pacientes con fibrilación auricular / Levels of antithrombin III and fibrinogen in patients with auricular fibrilation

Antecedentes: La fibrilación auricular es una arritmia sostenida común en la práctica médica; los pacientes que la padecen presentan alteraciones en el sistema de coagulación, particularmente en niveles de antitrombina III (AT-III) y fibrinógeno. Objetivo: Determinar en pacientes con fibrilación aricular la correlación entre imagen ecocardiográfica, niveles de AT-III y fibrinógeno. Material y métodos: Se registraron los niveles de antitrombina III, fibrinógeno y los resultados del ecocardiograma transesofágico de 47 pacientes con fibrilación auricular que ingresaron al Servicio de Urgencias del Hospital de Cardiología, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social. Se formaron dos grupos: I, 30 pacientes menores de 65 años (63.8 por ciento); II, 17 de 65 años o mayores. Resultados: Presentaron AT-III baja y trombos cuatro pacientes del grupo I (8.5 por ciento) y tres del grupo II (6.4 por ciento); cuatro del grupo II (8.5 por ciento), AT-III dentro de los límites de referencia y trombos. Por t de Student y c2 se obtuvo p < 0.05, y mediante p de Spearman y r de Pearson no se observó correlación estadística entre ecocardiograma y niveles de AT-III y fibrinógeno. El hematócrito en el grupo II se encontró elevado en cinco hombres y 12 mujeres. El aumento en los niveles de fibrinógeno y hematócrito predominó en el género femenino. Conclusiones: En los pacientes estudiados no se observó correlación estadística entre AT-III, fibrinógeno y ecocardiograma transesofágico. Los niveles bajos de la primera no estuvieron asociados con trombosis ni con el contraste espontáneo observado en el ecocardiograma.