Fitness Shifts the Balance of BDNF and IL-6 from Inflammation to Repair among People with Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.

Physical sedentarism is linked to elevated levels of circulating cytokines, whereas exercise upregulates growth-promoting proteins such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). The shift towards a 'repair' phenotype could protect against neurodegeneration, especially in diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). We investigated whether having higher fitness or participating in an acute bout of maximal exercise would shift the balance of BDNF and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in serum samples of people with progressive MS ( = 14), compared to matched controls ( = 8).