The Effect of a Short Period of Supplementation with Glutamine Dipeptide on the Cognitive Responses after a Resistance Training Session of Women with HIV/AIDS: A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Crossover Study

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of a short period of supplementation with glutamine dipeptide (GDP) on the acute responses to resistance training on the executive functions of people with HIV/AIDS. The sample consisted of 10 HIV+ women (45.00 ± 12.77 years old; 65.71 ± 12.04 kg; 1.54 ± 0.05 m) who were submitted to a randomized double-blind crossover procedure according to two experimental conditions: orally supplemented with 20 g/day of GDP or with maltodextrin for seven days. On the seventh day of supplementation all participants did cognitive function tests before and immediately after a resistance training session. Seven days of washout were adopted between conditions. Stroop and N-back tests were used to evaluate the executive functions. The training reduced the response time of each card in isolation and the latency time among them. GDP supplementation increased the magnitude of this effect, thus, reducing the latency time from the first to the last card in the Stroop test by almost 50% (P < 0.01). Considering the N-back test, there were no significant differences. It is suggested that GDP supplementation may increase the magnitude of the effect of an acute resistance training session in cognitive functions, particularly in the inhibitory control of people with HIV/AIDS. This trial is registered with NCT03236532.

Acute effect of resistance exercise on cognitive function in people living with HIV

“…Other studies also suggest that acute resistance exercise, in people living with or without HIV, is associated with cognitive improvements, especially in executive functions. 24,25,34 Nevertheless, this is the first study to evaluate the isolated acute effect of resistance exercise on cognition among PLHIV. In our study, changes were similar in the CG and the EG after the exercise session.…”

“…Souza et al. 25 is the only study published to date, which demonstrated the acute impact of RE on the attention and inhibition of women living with HIV . However, this study has two peculiarities when compared to the present research.…”

“…Based on a previous study, 25 with an effect size of 0.46, α = 0.05, and power of 80%, the sample size for detecting a significant interaction was 22 participants (11 per group)(GPower software 3.19). The data were tested for normality using the Shapiro-Wilk test for the groups separately.…”

“…Despite the findings in apparently healthy people, there is no body of data in the literature that would indicate that acute resistance exercise can improve the cognitive function of PLHIV, given that only one study has been published so far suggesting that training has the ability to improve cognition, but has investigated exercise associated with a short period of glutamine supplementation, 25 this study aimed to investigate the acute effect of a single resistance exercise session on the cognitive function of PLHIV.…”

The Possible Importance of Glutamine Supplementation to Mood and Cognition in Hypoxia from High Altitude

“…Several studies have demonstrated the relation between glutamine and anti-inflammatory effects by showing their influence on inflammatory signaling pathways, including the nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) and signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) [13]. Other studies show that glutamine can modulate aspects of the central nervous system and improve psychobiological aspects [12,14,15]. For example, glutamine supplementation can reduce subjective fatigue and ratings of perceived exertion during demanding tasks [13,16].…”