Exercise training reduces oxidative stress in people living with HIV/AIDS: a pilot study

Abstract

Background: Exercise training has been shown to be an effective strategy to balance oxidative stress status; however, this is underexplored in people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA).

Objective: To evaluate the effects of exercise training on oxidative stress in PLWHA receiving antiretroviral therapy.

Methods: Patients performed 24 sessions (3 times per week, 8 weeks) of either aerobic (AT), resistance (RT), or concurrent training (CT). Glutathione disulphide to glutathione ratio (GSSG/GSH) in circulating erythrocytes and thiobarbituric acid–reactive substances (TBARS) in plasma samples were assessed as oxidative stress markers. Eight PLWAH completed the training protocol (AT =3, RT =3, CT =2). The GSSG/GSH and TBARS values were logarithmically transformed to approximate a normal distribution. A paired t-test was used to determine the differences between baseline and post-training values.

Results: Data-pooled analysis showed a decrease in GSSG/GSH and TBARS after the training period: log GSSG/GSH= –1.26 ± 0.57 versus –1.54 ± 0.65, p = .01 and log TBARS =0.73 ± 0.35 versus 0.43 ± 0.21, p = .01. This was paralleled by a rise in peak oxygen uptake (VO_2peak = 29.14 ± 5.34 versus 32.48 ± 5.75 ml kg⁻¹ min⁻¹, p = .04). All the subjects who performed resistance exercises showed an average gain of 37 ± 8% in muscle strength with no difference between performing single or multiple sets in terms of muscle strength gain. The results reinforce the clinical importance of exercise as a rehabilitation intervention for PLWHA and emphasizes the safety of exercise at the physiological level with the potential to mediate health outcomes.

Keywords:

• AIDS
• aerobic exercise
• strength training
• antiretroviral therapy
• oxidative stress

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank all volunteers for their commitment to make this study possible.

Disclosure statement

Luís Fernando Deresz was supported by CAPES fellowship. No potential conflict of interest was reported by the remaining authors.

Additional information

Funding

This study was partially supported by the National Council of Technological and Scientific Development (CNPq) and Research Support Foundation of Rio Grande do Sul (FAPERGS).