Research

Hormonal

A 12-week combined resistance and high-intensity interval training program significantly increases skeletal muscle gene expression of kynurenine aminotransferase (KAT) isoforms and transcriptional coactivators (PGC-1α, PPARα, PPARδ) in healthy older men, but does not significantly alter circulating plasma kynurenine metabolites.

For older men, a 12-week program combining resistance and high-intensity interval training effectively upregulates the genetic machinery in muscles associated with mood regulation pathways (kynurenine pathway). However, this molecular shift does not immediately result in measurable changes in blood metabolite levels. Consistency is key, as the benefit lies in the local muscle adaptation rather than immediate systemic metabolic shifts.

GoodQualifiesHIGH confidence
Exercise training significantly increased skeletal muscle gene expression of transcription factors... and KAT isoforms 1– 4... Concentrations of plasma kynurenines were not altered.
David J. Allison et al. · American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology · 2019

Why this rating

Randomized controlled trial design with objective molecular measurements, though limited by small sample size (n=25) and lack of clinical symptom correlation.

Source

Exercise training impacts skeletal muscle gene expression related to the kynurenine pathway

David J. Allison et al. · American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology · 2019

DOI 10.1152/ajpcell.00448.2018

rct · n=25Cited 63×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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