effects of aerobic interval training along with ginkgo biloba supplementation on passive avoidance memory and gdnf gene expression in alzheimer rats

Background: alzheimer's disease (ad) represents the most prevalent form of dementia, characterized by memory loss, and is a complex, progressive neurodegenerative condition. objectives: this study aimed to explore the impact of aerobic interval training (ait) combined with ginkgo biloba(gb) supplementation on passive avoidance memory function and the expression of the glial cell-derived neurotrophic factor (gdnf) gene in rats afflicted with ad. methods: a total of forty-four male wistar rats, each weighing approximately 250 ± 20 g, were maintained in a controlled environment at a specified temperature. over 8 weeks (5 days per week), they underwent ait and received gb supplements at a dosage of 100 mg/kg. the rats were randomly assigned into six groups: healthy control (hc) with 7 rats, ad control (ac) with 8 rats, amyloid-β (aβ) injection plus gb supplement (aβ + gb) with 8 rats, aβ injection plus gb supplement plus ait (aβ + gb + ait) with 8 rats, aβ injection plus ait (aβ + ait) with 8 rats, and sham surgery (ss) with 5 rats. the shuttlebox apparatus was utilized to assess the effect of aβ on passive avoidance memory and to confirm disease induction. gdnf gene expression was measured using the qrt-pcr method. results: the study found significant improvements in passive avoidance memory in the aβ + ait and aβ + gb + ait groups compared to the ac group after 8 weeks of ait and gb supplementation (p = 0.02 and p = 0.000, respectively). long-term memory performance was notably enhanced in the aβ + gb + ait group (p = 0.000). additionally, gdnf expression significantly increased in the aβ + gb + ait and aβ + gb groups in comparison to the ac group (p = 0.000 and p = 0.01, respectively). conclusions: a synergistic effect of ait and gb supplementation was observed, leading to an increase in gdnf gene expression and improvements in both passive avoidance memory and long-term memory in male rats with ad.