TY - JOUR
T1 - Molecular aspects of the cardioprotective effect of exercise in the elderly
AU - Rengo, Giuseppe
AU - Parisi, Valentina
AU - Femminella, Grazia Daniela
AU - Pagano, Gennaro
AU - De Lucia, Claudio
AU - Cannavo, Alessandro
AU - Liccardo, Daniela
AU - Giallauria, Francesco
AU - Scala, Oriana
AU - Zincarelli, Carmela
AU - Perrone Filardi, Pasquale
AU - Ferrara, Nicola
AU - Leosco, Dario
PY - 2013/10
Y1 - 2013/10
N2 - Aging is a well-recognized risk factor for several different forms of cardiovascular disease. However, mechanisms by which aging exerts its negative effect on outcome have been only partially clarified. Numerous evidence indicate that aging is associated with alterations of several mechanisms whose integrity confers protective action on the heart and vasculature. The present review aims to focus on the beneficial effects of exercise, which plays a pivotal role in primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases, in counteracting age-related deterioration of protective mechanisms that are crucially involved in the homeostasis of cardiovascular system. In this regard, animal and human studies indicate that exercise training is able: (1) to improve the inotropic reserve of the aging heart through restoration of cardiac β-adrenergic receptor signaling; (2) to rescue the mechanism of cardiac preconditioning and angiogenesis whose integrity has been shown to confer cardioprotection against ischemia and to improve post-myocardial infarction left ventricular remodeling; (3) to counteract age-related reduction of antioxidant systems that is associated to decreased cellular resistance to reactive oxygen species accumulation. Moreover, this review also describes the molecular effects induced by different exercise training protocols (endurance vs. resistance) in the attempt to better explain what kind of exercise strategy could be more efficacious to improve cardiovascular performance in the elderly population.
AB - Aging is a well-recognized risk factor for several different forms of cardiovascular disease. However, mechanisms by which aging exerts its negative effect on outcome have been only partially clarified. Numerous evidence indicate that aging is associated with alterations of several mechanisms whose integrity confers protective action on the heart and vasculature. The present review aims to focus on the beneficial effects of exercise, which plays a pivotal role in primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases, in counteracting age-related deterioration of protective mechanisms that are crucially involved in the homeostasis of cardiovascular system. In this regard, animal and human studies indicate that exercise training is able: (1) to improve the inotropic reserve of the aging heart through restoration of cardiac β-adrenergic receptor signaling; (2) to rescue the mechanism of cardiac preconditioning and angiogenesis whose integrity has been shown to confer cardioprotection against ischemia and to improve post-myocardial infarction left ventricular remodeling; (3) to counteract age-related reduction of antioxidant systems that is associated to decreased cellular resistance to reactive oxygen species accumulation. Moreover, this review also describes the molecular effects induced by different exercise training protocols (endurance vs. resistance) in the attempt to better explain what kind of exercise strategy could be more efficacious to improve cardiovascular performance in the elderly population.
KW - Adrenergic receptors
KW - Aging
KW - Angiogenesis
KW - Exercise
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84886651928&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84886651928&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s40520-013-0117-7
DO - 10.1007/s40520-013-0117-7
M3 - Article
C2 - 23949971
AN - SCOPUS:84886651928
VL - 25
SP - 487
EP - 497
JO - Aging clinical and experimental research
JF - Aging clinical and experimental research
SN - 1594-0667
IS - 5
ER -