Exercise and immunity: a review with emphasis on the horse.
Abstract: Exercise has been recognized as a stress, which can significantly alter the host's immune response and, therefore, its susceptibility to disease. Whereas research in this area has previously focused primarily on human subjects and laboratory animals, it has more recently extended to domestic animals, especially the equine athlete. Despite several studies, defining the relationship among exercise, the immune response, and disease has proven difficult due to a number of factors, including the complexity of the immune system and the variable nature of exercise itself. It now appears that exercise has dual effects on the immune system. Suppressive effects, such as a decline in the ratio of CD4+ to CD8+ cells, diminished lymphocyte function, and a decline in the number and cytolytic activity of natural killer cells have been observed in response to brief high-intensity exercise, prolonged exhaustive exercise, and overtraining. In contrast, moderate training generally has beneficial effects on host defense mechanisms. The mechanisms for regulating the dual effects of exercise are complex, involving a network of neuroendocrine hormones and cytokines.
Publication Date: 1996-09-01 PubMed ID: 8884712DOI: 10.1111/j.1939-1676.1996.tb02063.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Review
Summary
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This research explores the effects of different types of exercise on the immune system, with a particular focus on horses. It suggests that while intense or exhaustive activity can have negative impacts, moderate training can enhance immunity, albeit through very complex hormonal and cellular pathways.
Introduction
- The research investigates the correlation between exercise and the immune response in horses, following findings from human and laboratory animal studies.
- The complexity of the immune system and the variable nature of exercise makes defining this relationship difficult.
Effects of Exercise on the Immune System
- Exercise has dual effects on the immune system, with both suppressive and beneficial impacts observed.
- The suppressive effects include a decline in the ratio of CD4+ to CD8+ cells, diminished lymphocyte function, and a reduction in the number and cytolytic activity of natural killer cells.
- These negative outcomes are most often seen following high-intensity exercise, long bouts of exhaustive exercise, and overtraining.
- Conversely, moderate training appears to have beneficial effects on the host’s defense mechanisms.
Mechanisms of Exercise-Immune Regulation
- The process through which exercise influences the immune system is complex and involves a network of neuroendocrine hormones and cytokines.
- These hormones and cytokines, which are molecules that allow immune cells to communicate with each other, play a crucial role in driving the immune response following exercise.
- Further studies are needed to fully understand these mechanisms and how they can be manipulated to ensure the health and performance of equine athletes.
Cite This Article
APA
Hines MT, Schott HC, Bayly WM, Leroux AJ.
(1996).
Exercise and immunity: a review with emphasis on the horse.
J Vet Intern Med, 10(5), 280-289.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-1676.1996.tb02063.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman 99164-6610, USA.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- B-Lymphocytes / immunology
- CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / immunology
- CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / immunology
- Communicable Diseases / immunology
- Communicable Diseases / veterinary
- Cytokines / physiology
- Horse Diseases
- Horses / physiology
- Immune System / immunology
- Leukocyte Count
- Leukocytes / physiology
- Physical Conditioning, Animal
- Physical Exertion
- Stress, Physiological
Citations
This article has been cited 12 times.- Nie M, Liu Q, Jia R, Li Z, Li X, Meng X. Comparative transcriptome analysis of unfractionated peripheral blood leukocytes after exercise in human.. Sci Rep 2023 Jul 10;13(1):11140.
- Plisak U, Szczepaniak J, Żmigrodzka M, Giercuszkiewicz-Hecold B, Witkowska-Piłaszewicz O. Changes in novel anti-infalmmatory cytokine concetration in the bood of endurance and race horses at different levels of training.. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2023;21:418-424.
- Bazzano M, Arfuso F, Bonfili L, Eleuteri AM, McLean A, Serri E, Spaterna A, Laus F. Measuring Biochemical Variables and Serum Amyloid A (SAA) in Working Mules in Central Italy.. Animals (Basel) 2022 Oct 16;12(20).
- Schmucker S, Preisler V, Marr I, Krüger K, Stefanski V. Single housing but not changes in group composition causes stress-related immunomodulations in horses.. PLoS One 2022;17(8):e0272445.
- Baakhtari M, Imaizumi N, Kida T, Yanagita T, Ramah A, Ahmadi P, Takebe N, Iwamoto Y, Korosue K, Tsuzuki N, Yasuda M. Effects of branched-chain amino acids on immune status of young racing horses.. J Vet Med Sci 2022 Apr 15;84(4):558-565.
- Mohamed AA, Alawna M. The effect of aerobic exercise on immune biomarkers and symptoms severity and progression in patients with COVID-19: A randomized control trial.. J Bodyw Mov Ther 2021 Oct;28:425-432.
- Mohamed A, Alawna M. Enhancing oxygenation of patients with coronavirus disease 2019: Effects on immunity and other health-related conditions.. World J Clin Cases 2021 Jul 6;9(19):4939-4958.
- Witkowska-Piłaszewicz O, Pingwara R, Winnicka A. The Effect of Physical Training on Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cell Ex Vivo Proliferation, Differentiation, Activity, and Reactive Oxygen Species Production in Racehorses.. Antioxidants (Basel) 2020 Nov 20;9(11).
- Cappelli K, Amadori M, Mecocci S, Miglio A, Antognoni MT, Razzuoli E. Immune Response in Young Thoroughbred Racehorses under Training.. Animals (Basel) 2020 Oct 5;10(10).
- Mohamed AA, Alawna M. Role of increasing the aerobic capacity on improving the function of immune and respiratory systems in patients with coronavirus (COVID-19): A review.. Diabetes Metab Syndr 2020 Jul-Aug;14(4):489-496.
- Assunção P, Barbosa T, Yonezawa L, Barbosa L, Watanabe M, Kohayagawa A, Schmidt E. Acute-phase protein profile in horses subjected to different exercise protocols.. Can J Vet Res 2019 Oct;83(4):272-278.
- Escribano BM, Castejón FM, Vivo R, Santisteban R, Agüera EI, Rubio MD. Effects of training on phagocytic and oxidative metabolism of peripheral neutrophils in horses exercised in the aerobic-anaerobic transition area.. Vet Res Commun 2005 Feb;29(2):149-58.
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