The Link Between Strength and Endurance Training and Brain Health in Healthy Adults: A Comparative Study of Former Professional Athletes and Sedentary Individuals
试验速览
- 阶段
- 不适用
- 状态
- 招募中
- 入组人数
- 60
- 试验地点
- 1
- 主要终点
- Hippocampal volume measured by high-resolution 3 T T1-weighted MRI (mm³)
研究概览
简要总结
The goal of this observational study is to investigate the cross-sectional relationship between physical activity and brain health from a multiscale approach (neuropsychology, neuroimaging, peripheral biomarkers and genetics) in former athletes and sedentary individuals. The main question it aims to answer is:
Do former athletes have better brain structure than sedentary people? Evaluating the differences in neurodegenerative processes between competitive training and sedentary and inactivity.
研究设计
- 研究类型
- Observational
- 观察模型
- Cohort
- 时间视角
- Cross Sectional
入排标准
- 年龄范围
- 40 Years 至 75 Years（Adult, Older Adult）
- 性别
- All
- 接受健康志愿者
- 是
入选标准
- •Group A: ex-athletes and continue to perform regular physical exercise (minimum 3 days/week of moderate-vigorous intensity).
- •Group B: sedentary individuals, (i.e., perform <150 min of moderate intensity exercise per week or IPAQ score<600 MET min/week).
- •In both groups (A and B) the conditions of physical exercise or sedentary lifestyle must have been maintained for at least 6 months prior to the evaluations.
- •Not having a history of neurological or psychiatric disorder or suffering from a serious medical condition
排除标准
- •Medical conditions that have a high risk of associated cognitive symptoms.
- •Severe head injury with loss of consciousness within the previous 5 years.
- •Alcoholism (>3 alcoholic drinks per day).
- •Chronic use of anxiolytics, neuroleptics, narcotics, anticonvulsants, or sedative hypnotics.
- •Hearing or visual impairment that would preclude testing
- •History of neurological disease with clinically relevant impact on cognition (e.g. cerebrovascular disease).
- •Incidental structural brain findings with impact on cognitive impairment or survival (e.g., malignant brain tumor).
- •Presence of severe systemic disease (e.g., cancer under treatment).
- •Consumption of anabolic substances.
- •Problems understanding spoken or written Spanish.
- •Those with pacemakers or metallic implants that may interfere with the MRI.
结局指标
主要结局
Hippocampal volume measured by high-resolution 3 T T1-weighted MRI (mm³)
时间窗: Baseline
Volume extracted with FreeSurfer; Larger values indicate greater hippocampal integrity
Resting-state functional connectivity between primary motor cortex and supplementary motor area measured by 3 T fMRI (Fisher-Z)
时间窗: Baseline
Fisher-Z transformed correlation computed with CONN; Higher values indicate stronger connectivity
Concentration of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in plasma (pg/mL)
时间窗: Baseline
Measured with ELISA kit (e.g., R\&D Systems, Cat. #DY248). Higher BDNF reflects greater neurotrophic support.
Concentration of total tau protein in plasma (pg/mL)
时间窗: Baseline
Assayed by high-sensitivity ELISA (e.g., Cusabio, Cat. #CSB-E13913h). Greater tau concentration indicates increased axonal injury or neurodegeneration.
Digit Span Forward maximum span length (digits)
时间窗: Baseline
Attention assessed with Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV Digit Span Forward subtest; Maximum correctly repeated digit sequence recorded. Higher scores indicate better attention/short-term memory capacity.
Trail Making Test Part A completion time (seconds)
时间窗: Baseline
Visual attention and processing speed measured by TMT-A; time to connect 25 numbers in ascending order recorded. Shorter times indicate better performance.
Digit Span Backward maximum span length (digits)
时间窗: Baseline
Working memory measured with WAIS-IV Digit Span Backward; Longest correctly repeated backward sequence recorded. Higher scores indicate better working memory.
Trail Making Test Part B completion time (seconds)
时间窗: Baseline
Executive function (set-shifting) assessed by TMT-B; Time to alternately connect numbers and letters recorded. Shorter times indicate better executive control.
Verbal fluency (F-A-S) total words in 60 s (count)
时间窗: Baseline
Phonemic fluency tested with Controlled Oral Word Association Test (letters F, A, S, 60 s each); total correct words across three letters. Higher counts indicate better executive retrieval fluency.
Stroop Color-Word interference score (seconds)
时间窗: Baseline
Inhibition assessed with Golden Stroop test; The count of completions within 45 seconds is recorded. Lower times reflect better inhibitory control.
Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) total score (0 - 30 points)
时间窗: Baseline
10-minute screening of global cognition covering memory, attention, language, visuospatial, and executive domains. Values ≥ 26 are considered normal. Higher scores indicate better cognition.
Number of participants carrying at least one APOE ε4 allele (count of participants)
时间窗: Baseline
Genomic DNA isolated from EDTA whole blood; APOE genotyping by TaqMan SNP assays rs429358 and rs7412. Any ε4-containing genotype (ε2/ε4, ε3/ε4, ε4/ε4) classified as "ε4 carrier". Higher counts = higher ε4 prevalence.
次要结局
- Serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol measured by enzymatic assay (mg/dL)(Baseline)
- Maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂max) measured by CPET with ramp protocol on treadmill (mL·kg-¹·min-¹)(Baseline)
- Mean daily minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity measured by ActiGraph wGT3X-BT accelerometer over 7 days (min/day)(Baseline)
- Body mass index (BMI) calculated from weight and stadiometer-measured height (kg/m²)(Baseline)
- Peak force of mid-thigh-pull test measured by portable force dynamometer (N)(Baseline)
- Handgrip strength measured by grip dynamometer (kg)(Baseline)
- Timed Up-and-Go (TUG) test completion time (seconds)(Baseline)
- Balance stability and speed score measured by TANITA force platform (unitless)(Baseline)
- Percentage body fat measured by multifrequency bioimpedance analyzer InBody system (%)(Baseline)
- Skeletal muscle mass measured by multifrequency bioimpedance analyzer InBody system (kg)(Baseline)
- Waist circumference measured by flexible tape at midpoint between lowest rib and iliac crest (cm)(Baseline)
- Hip circumference measured by flexible tape at level of greater trochanters (cm)(Baseline)
- Serum triglycerides measured by enzymatic colorimetric assay (mg/dL)(Baseline)
- Serum total cholesterol measured by enzymatic colorimetric assay (mg/dL)(Baseline)
- Serum low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol calculated by Friedewald formula (mg/dL)(Baseline)
- Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration measured by chemiluminescent immunoassay (ng/mL)(Baseline)
- Mean daily sedentary time measured by ActiGraph wGT3X-BT accelerometer over 7 days (min/day)(Baseline)
- Mean nightly sleep duration measured by ActiGraph wGT3X-BT over 7 nights (hours/night)(Baseline)
- Total physical activity measured by International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Long Form (MET·min/week)(Baseline)
- Mediterranean Diet Adherence Score measured by 14-item Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (0 - 14 points)(Baseline)
研究者
Songxin Tang
Principal Investigator
Technical University of Madrid