Regular treadmill running during adolescence improves learning and memory in rats. During adolescence, the baseline level of stress is thought to be greater than during other periods of life. We investigated the effects of voluntary and involuntary exercise on the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels, and spatial learning, memory and anxiety in adolescent male and female rats. The voluntary exercise group was given free access to a running wheel for 6 weeks. The involuntary exercise group was forced to run on a treadmill for 30 min at 8 m/min 5 days/week for 6 weeks. Improved learning was demonstrated in both exercise groups compared to controls. Neuron density in the CA1 region of the hippocampus, dentate gyrus and prefrontal cortex were increased. Hippocampal VEGF and BDNF levels were increased in both exercise groups compared to controls. In females, anxiety and corticosterone levels were decreased; BDNF and VEGF levels were higher in the voluntary exercise group than in the involuntary exercise group. The adolescent hippocampus is affected favorably by regular exercise. Although no difference was found in anxiety levels as a result of involuntary exercise in males, females showed increased anxiety levels, and decreased VEGF and BDNF levels in the prefrontal cortex after involuntary exercise.

Single bout of exercise can improve the performance on cognitive tasks. However, cognitive responses may be controversial due to different type, intensity, and duration of exercise. In addition, the mechanism of the effect of acute exercise on brain is still unclear. This study was aimed to investigate the effects of supramaximal exercise on cognitive tasks by means of brain oxygenation monitoring. The brain oxygenation of Prefrontal cortex (PFC) was measured on 35 healthy male volunteers via functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) system. Subjects performed 2-Back test before and after the supramaximal exercise wingate anerobic test (WAnT) lasting 30-s on cycle ergometer. The PFC oxygenation change evaluation revealed that PFC oxygenation rise during post-exercise 2-Back task was considerably higher than those in pre-exercise 2-Back task. In order to describe the relationship between oxygenation change and exercise performance, subjects were divided into two groups as high performers (HP) and low performers (LP) according to their peak power values (PP) obtained from the supramaximal test. The oxy-hemoglobin (oxy-Hb) values were compared between pre- and post-exercise conditions within subjects and also between subjects according to peak power. When performers were compared, in the HP group, the oxy-Hb values in post-exercise 2-Back test were significantly higher than those in pre-exercise 2-Back test. HP had significantly higher post-exercise oxy-Hb change (Δ) than those of LP. In addition, PP of the total group were significantly correlated with Δoxy-Hb.The key findings of the present study revealed that acute supramaximal exercise has an impact on the brain oxygenation during a cognitive task. Also, the higher the anerobic PP describes the larger the oxy-Hb response in post-exercise cognitive task. The current study also demonstrated a significant correlation between peak power (exercise load) and post-exercise hemodynamic responses (oxy-, deoxy- and total-Hb). The magnitude of this impact might be related with the physical performance capacities of the individuals. This can become a valuable parameter for future studies on human factor.

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