The impact of early aerobic exercise on brain microvascular alterations induced by cerebral hypoperfusion

The therapeutic potential of early exercise training following cerebral hypoperfusion was investigated on brain perfusion and inflammation in rats with permanent bilateral occlusion of the common carotid arteries (2VO). Wistar rats were subjected to 2VO or sham surgery and each group was then subdivided randomly into sedentary or exercise groups. Early exercise training was initiated after three days of 2VO or sham surgery and consisted of seven days of treadmill training (30 min/day at ∼60% of maximal exercise test), composing four groups: 1) Sham sedentary (Sham-Sed), 2) Sham exercised (Sham-Ex), 3) 2VO sedentary (2VO-Sed) and 4) 2VO exercised (2VO-Ex). Microvascular cerebral blood flow (MCBF) and NADPH oxidase and eNOS gene expression were evaluated by laser speckle contrast imaging and RT-PCR, respectively, and brain functional capillary density and endothelial-leukocyte interactions were evaluated by fluorescence intravital video-microscopy. The 2VO-Sed group presented a decrease in MCBF (Sham-Sed: 230.9 ± 12.2 vs. 2VO-Sed: 183.6 ± 10.6 arbitrary perfusion units, P < 0.05) and in functional capillary density (Sham-Sed: 336.4 ± 25.3 vs. 2VO-Sed: 225.5 ± 28.1 capillaries/mm2, P < 0.05). Early intervention with physical exercise was able to prevent the cerebral microvascular inflammation by decreasing endothelial-leukocyte interactions (2VO-Ex: 0.9 ± 0.3 vs. 2VO-Sed: 5 ± 0.6 cells/min/100 μm, P < 0.0001) and reducing brain NADPH oxidase gene expression (2VO-Ex: 1.7 ± 0.1 arbitrary units, P < 0.05). Cerebral microcirculatory and inflammatory alterations appear to be triggered during the first days after 2VO surgery, and early intervention with physical exercise may represent a means of preventing the microvascular alterations induced by chronic cerebral hypoperfusion.