Effects of Eight-Week High-Intensity Interval Training Combined with Pomegranate Juice Supplementation on Intestinal Lipid Peroxidation and Visceral Fat Mass in Colorectal Cancer-Induced Laboratory Mice
Subject Areas : Sport PhysiologyRazieh Norizadeh Ahari 1 , Seyed Ali Hosseini 2 , Farzaneh Taghian 3 , Khosrow Jalali Dehkordi 4
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Keywords: High-intensity interval training, Pomegranate juice supplementation, Body composition, Lipid peroxidation, Colorectal cancerr,
Abstract :
Background: Dysregulation of lipid metabolism and increased lipid peroxidation are key contributors to colorectal cancer (CRC) progression. Considering the limited evidence on the combined effects of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and pomegranate juice (PJ) supplementation in CRC, the present study aimed to evaluate the impact of an eight-week HIIT program combined with PJ supplementation on intestinal lipid peroxidation and visceral fat mass in CRC-induced laboratory mice.
Methods: In this experimental study, thirty-two male BALB/c mice (18–22 g, 8–10 weeks old) were induced with CRC via subcutaneous injection of 5×10^5 viable CT26 cells and randomly assigned to four groups: (1) CRC, (2) PJ, (3) HIIT, and (4) HIIT+PJ. To assess the effects of CRC itself, eight mice were allocated to a healthy control group (HC), and eight additional mice were included in a Sham group to evaluate culture medium effects. HIIT was performed five sessions per week for eight weeks, progressing from five high-intensity sets in week one to sixteen sets in week eight, at 75–90% of maximal running speed on a 15° incline. PJ supplementation consisted of 5% of the daily drinking water intake. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s post hoc test (P ≤ 0.05).
Results: Post-intervention body weight, visceral fat mass, and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were significantly higher in the CRC group compared to HC (P < 0.001). In contrast, PJ, HIIT, and HIIT+PJ groups exhibited significantly lower body weight and visceral fat compared to CRC (P < 0.001). MDA levels were significantly reduced in HIIT and HIIT+PJ groups relative to CRC (P < 0.05). Moreover, post-intervention body weight, visceral fat mass, and MDA in HIIT and HIIT+PJ groups were significantly lower than in the PJ group (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: Both HIIT and PJ, individually and in combination, effectively improved body composition. However, HIIT alone or combined with PJ exerted more pronounced effects on reducing lipid peroxidation and enhancing body composition compared to PJ supplementation alone.
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