Regular exercise participation improves genomic stability in diabetic patients: an exploratory study to analyse telomere length and DNA damage.

Physical activity has been demonstrated to be effective in the prevention and treatment of different chronic conditions, including type 2 diabetes (T2D). In particular, several studies highlighted how the beneficial effects of physical activity may be related to the stability of the DNA molecule, such as longer telomeric ends. Here we analyze the effect of exercise training on telomere length, spontaneous and HO-induced DNA damage, as well as the apoptosis level in leukocytes from untrained or trained T2D patients vs.

Physical exercise and redox balance in type 2 diabetics: effects of moderate training on biomarkers of oxidative stress and DNA damage evaluated through comet assay.

Objective: Hyperglycemia leads to increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in type 2 diabetes, which reduces cellular antioxidant defenses and induces DNA lesions. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects on redox homeostasis and DNA oxidative damage of exercise training in patients with type 2 diabetes compared with nondiabetic individuals.

Methods And Results: 12 sedentary type 2 diabetic males (62.

Oxidative stress responses to a graded maximal exercise test in older adults following explosive-type resistance training.

We recently demonstrated that low frequency, moderate intensity, explosive-type resistance training (EMRT) is highly beneficial in elderly subjects towards muscle strength and power, with a systemic adaptive response of anti-oxidant and stress-induced markers. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the impact of EMRT on oxidative stress biomarkers induced in old people (70-75 years) by a single bout of acute, intense exercise. Sixteen subjects randomly assigned to either a control, not exercising group (n=8) or a trained group performing EMRT protocol for 12-weeks (n=8), were submitted to a graded maximal exercise stress test (GXT) at baseline and after the 12-weeks of EMRT protocol, with blood samples collected before, immediately after, 1 and 24h post-GXT test.

Modulation of the apoptotic pathway in skeletal muscle models: the role of growth hormone.

Despite numerous studies on the role of growth hormone (GH), its function in skeletal muscle apoptosis secondary to various stimuli is poorly understood. In this study, we used rodent muscle cell lines to analyse cell growth and survival as well as the morphological and molecular markers of cell death in C2C12 and L6C5 myoblasts. These cells were treated either in the presence or absence of GH under serum starvation conditions or in the pro-apoptotic concentrations of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2).

Cellular and biochemical parameters of exercise-induced oxidative stress: relationship with training levels.

To better clarify the relationship between physical activity and oxidative stress, we determined the effects of a maximal test in 18 young subjects with different training levels (six professional Athletes and 12 non-agonists (NA)). Redox homeostasis (total antioxidant activity (TAS), vitamin C and glutathione (GSH)), oxidative damage (diene conjugation and hemolysis), lymphocyte cell death and repair systems (apoptosis, micronuclei and Hsp70 expression) were evaluated. We found that agonistic training led to a chronic oxidative insult (high baseline values of oxidized glutathione (GSSG), micronuclei and hemolysis).

Individual susceptibility to DNA telomerase inhibitors: a study on the chromosome instability induced by 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine in lymphocytes of elderly twins.

The activation of telomerase in phytohemagglutinin-stimulated peripheral lymphocytes is thought to play a role in telomere maintenance and DNA repair. Considering the importance of this enzyme in both cancer and senescence, we studied the effects of the telomerase inhibitor 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine on the frequency of chromosomal aberrations and micronuclei induced in peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) of elderly monozygotic and dizygotic twins, evaluated with respect to the genotoxic effects induced in unrelated young subjects. Our results show that the cytogenetic damage induced by 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine in human PBL was mainly regulated by genetic factors and allowed the identification of hypersensitive subjects.

Aphidicolin and bleomycin induced chromosome damage as biomarker of mutagen sensitivity: a twin study.

The induction of chromosome damage in cultured human lymphocytes by in vitro treatments with aphidicolin (APC) and bleomycin (BLM) has been proposed as test of sensitivity to mutagens. To assess their validity, we have investigated whether the individual expression of induced chromosome damage has a genetic rather than an environmental basis. Metaphase analysis for chromosomal aberrations (CA) and micronucleus (MN) assay in cytokinesis-blocked cells have been performed in peripheral blood lymphocytes from 19 healthy male twins (9 monozygotic and 10 dizygotic pairs), aged 70-78 years, after APC, BLM and APC+BLM treatments.

Cellular responses to H(2)O(2) and bleomycin-induced oxidative stress in L6C5 rat myoblasts.

In muscle cells, reactive oxygen species (ROS) are continually generated. It is believed that these molecules have a well-established role as physiological modulators of skeletal muscle functions, ranging from development to metabolism and from blood flow to contractile functions. Moreover, ROS may contribute to the development of muscle fatigue, inflammation, and degeneration, and may be implicated in many muscle diseases.

Two Italian twin registers for research in human biology and sport science.

Two Italian twin registers are described, the Register of Italian Twin Athletes (RITA) and the Twin Register of Rome (TERRY), developed in recent years at the newly established University of Sport and Movement Sciences of Rome-Foro Italico (IUSM). Ascertainment procedures, database, applications and current prospects are outlined, along with their research focus, which mainly consists of epidemiological and clinical research on the determinants of sport performance as well as on the role of genetic factors versus lifestyle, especially physical activity, in health and aging.