Submitted on August 10, 2007
Accepted on March 21, 2008
Elevation of body temperature is essential factor for exercise-increased extracellular heat shock protein 72 level in rat plasma
Yuji Ogura1, Hisashi Naito2*, Senay Akin3, Noriko Ichinoseki-Sekine1, Mitsutoshi Kurosaka2, Ryo Kakigi4, Takao Sugiura5, Scott K. Powers6, Shizuo Katamoto2, and Haydar A. Demirel7
1 Institute of Health and Sports Science & Medicine, Juntendo University, Inba, Chiba, Japan
2 Exercise Physiology, Juntendo University, Inba, Chiba, Japan; Institute of Health and Sports Science & Medicine, Juntendo University, Inba, Chiba, Japan
3 School of Sports Sciences and Technology, Hacettepe University, Beytepe, Ankara, Turkey
4 Exercise Physiology, Juntendo University, Inba, Chiba, Japan
5 Exercise and Health Sciences, Yamaguchi University, Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi, Japan
6 Dept. of Applied Physiology and Kinesiology, University of Florida, Gainesville,, Florida, United States
7 School of Sports Sciences and Technology, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Beytepe, Turkey
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: naitoh{at}sakura.juntendo.ac.jp.
This study examined whether the exercise-increased extracellular heat shock protein 72 (eHsp72) level in rat was associated with body temperature elevation during exercise. In all, 26 female Sprague-Dawley rats (3 months old) were assigned randomly to control (CON, n = 8), exercise under warm temperature (WEx, n = 9), or exercise under cold temperature (CEx, n = 9). The WEx and CEx were trained respectively at 25°C or 4°C for nine days using a treadmill. Before and immediately after the final exercise bout, the colonic temperatures were measured as an index of body temperature. The animals were subsequently anesthetized and blood samples were collected and centrifuged. Plasma samples were obtained to assess their eHsp72 levels. Only the colonic temperature in WEx was increased significantly (P < 0.05) by exercise. The eHsp72 level in WEx was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that of either the CON or CEx. However, no significant difference was found between CON and CEx. Regression analyses revealed that the eHsp72 level increased as a function of the body temperature. In another experiment, the eHsp72 level of animals with body temperature that was passively elevated through similar kinetics to those of the exercise was studied. Results of this experiment showed that mere body temperature elevation was insufficient to induce eHsp72 responses. Collectively, our results suggest that body temperature elevation during exercise is important for induction of exercise-increased eHsp72. In addition, the possible role of body temperature elevation is displayed when the exercise stressor is combined with it.
