Effect of High-intensity Training and Probiotics on Gut Microbiota Diversity in Competitive Swimmers: Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Background Physical exercise has favorable effects on the structure of gut microbiota and metabolite production in sedentary subjects. However, little is known whether adjustments in an athletic program impact overall changes of gut microbiome in high-level athletes. We therefore characterized fecal microbiota and serum metabolites in response to a 7-week, high-intensity training program and consumption of probiotic Bryndza cheese. Methods Fecal and blood samples and training logs were collected from young competitive male (n = 17) and female (n = 7) swimmers. Fecal microbiota were categorized using specific primers targeting the V1–V3 region of 16S rDNA, and serum metabolites were characterized by NMR-spectroscopic analysis and by multivariate statistical analysis, Spearman rank correlations, and Random Forest models. Results We found higher α-diversity, represented by the Shannon index value (HITB-pre 5.9 [± 0.4]; HITB-post 6.4 [± 0.4], p = 0.007), (HIT-pre 5.5 [± 0.6]; HIT-post 5.9 [± 0.6], p = 0.015), after the end of the training program in both groups independently of Bryndza cheese consumption. However, Lactococcus spp. increased in both groups, with a higher effect in the Bryndza cheese consumers (HITB-pre 0.0021 [± 0.0055]; HITB-post 0.0268 [± 0.0542], p = 0.008), (HIT-pre 0.0014 [± 0.0036]; HIT-post 0.0068 [± 0.0095], p = 0.046). Concomitant with the increase of high-intensity exercise and the resulting increase of anaerobic metabolism proportion, pyruvate (p[HITB] = 0.003; p[HIT] = 0.000) and lactate (p[HITB] = 0.000; p[HIT] = 0.030) increased, whereas acetate (p[HITB] = 0.000; p[HIT] = 0.002) and butyrate (p[HITB] = 0.091; p[HIT] = 0.019) significantly decreased. Conclusions Together, these data demonstrate a significant effect of high-intensity training (HIT) on both gut microbiota composition and serum energy metabolites. Thus, the combination of intensive athletic training with the use of natural probiotics is beneficial because of the increase in the relative abundance of lactic acid bacteria.

Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior and Microbiome: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

“…Twenty-two cross-sectional studies recruited athletes from different sports such as rugby, athletics or football, among others 47,49,58,60–62,74–79,50,80,104,51–57 . Six studies analyzed the effects of a marathon, footrace or rowing race on microbiome 23,87,89,90,92,93 , three reported the effect of a single bout of PA (i.e., no sport competition) on microbiome 86,88,91 and 32 conducted a long-term PA intervention ranged from two weeks 121 to thirty-four weeks 115 , mostly consisting of aerobic training 94,95,113,115,119– 121,97,98,103,105,107,109,111,112 or a combination of aerobic and resistance training 96,99,116–118,122–125,100–102,104,106,108,110,114 .…”

“…Concerning the detection method, 78 studies conducted the 16S rRNA gene sequencing approach to characterize the microbiome 23,36,45–48,51– 53,55,56,58,37,59–64,66–69,38,70–79,39,80–87,90,91,40,92–95,97–100,102,103,41,104,105,107–113,115,42,116,118–121,123–125,43,44 , 16 performed metagenomics analyses 23,49,101,106,114,115,117,122,50,54,57,60,65,89,95,96 and two studies focused on meta-transcriptomics (i.e., microbial RNA-sequencing) 50,88 . Twenty-one studies did not report dietary data for all the participants 36,39,102,104,106,111,113,115–117,119,121,74,123,76,79,80,86,88,98,99 . One study performed a control of diet (each participants received the same kind of food) during the PA intervention 87 .…”

Swimming and the human microbiome at the intersection of sports, clinical, and environmental sciences: A scoping review of the literature

“…Microbiomics represents an emerging field ( Neu et al, 2021 ), with increasing applications in the sports arena. Microbial metrics can well characterize an athlete’s energy utilization, even when changes in physical activity levels and adjustments of training protocols do not reflect in biochemical (such as total cholesterol, insulin, or glucose) ( Bielik et al, 2022 ), body composition and anthropometric (like fat mass, fat-free mass, or weight), or fitness measures ( Hampton-Marcell et al, 2020 ). The human microbiome is an excellent predictor of changes in host phenotype and, more generally speaking, in phenome ( Ursell et al, 2012 ; Neu et al, 2021 ), explaining up to 20% of host adaptation and related cellular/molecular phenomena, whilst the genome can explain up to less than 2% of host-related modifications.…”

“…Several exercise-related variables, such as training volume/intensity, impact the athlete’s microbiome, and specifically the non-core/peripheral microbiome, in terms of its architecture, composition, richness, and diversity. Swimming-related power-/sprint- and endurance-oriented activities, acute bouts, and chronic exercise, anaerobic and aerobic energy systems have a differential impact on the athlete’s microbiome, specifically in the swimmers ( Li et al, 2015 ; Hampton-Marcell et al, 2020 ; Zmijewski et al, 2021 ; Bielik et al, 2022 ). Therefore, their microbiome can be utilized for different purposes, including talent identification, monitoring the effects of training methodologies, and devising ad hoc conditioning protocols, including the administration of supplements and probiotics.…”

“…Effects of training and probiotic consumption Bielik et al (2022) sampled from a longitudinal prospective study and recruited 17 and 7 young competitive male and female swimmers, respectively, aged 16-25 years. The authors assessed the impact of a 7-week, high-intensity training (HIT) program with or without probiotic (Bryndza sheep-cheese) consumption (30 g, 3-4 times per week) on swimming performance-related outcomes during the Slovak Swimming National Championship over a long course (being the pool 50 m in length).…”