Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of exercise: role of redox signaling

Abstract

Contraction-induced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) has been implicated in oxidative stress to skeletal muscle for the past few decades. As research advances more evidence has revealed a more complete role of ROS under both physiological and pathological conditions. The current review postulated that moderate intensity of physical exercise has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects due to the operation and cross-talks of several redox-sensitive signal transduction pathways. The functional roles and mechanisms of action of the nuclear factor κB, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ co-activator 1α are highlighted.

Keywords::

• antioxidant
• exercise
• MAPK
• NFκB
• reactive oxygen species
• signaling

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), University of Minnesota Twin Cities, the Natural Science Foundation of China, and Tianjin Municipal Sci-tech-innovation Base Project for financial support.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no declarations of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.