saffron (crocus sativus l.), combined with endurance exercise, synergistically enhances bdnf, serotonin, and nt-3 in wistar rats

Background: evidence indicates that combined approaches based on exercise and nutrition benefit neural development. we aimed to determine the effect of saffron and endurance training on hippocampus neurogenic factors, neurotrophin-3 gene expression in soleus muscle, and short-term memory in wistar rats.methods: the study analyzed four groups of ten rats each: control, exercise, saffron, and saffron plus exercise. the rats in the exercise groups were trained on a rodent motor-driven treadmill. all rats were gavage daily with either saffron extract (40 mg/kg) or water. after eight weeks of intervention all rats were evaluated using the novel object recognition (nor) test. blood and tissue samples were collected to measure proteins and neurotrophin-3 gene expression.results: rats that received saffron treatment combined with exercise had significantly greater brain-derived neurotrophic factor (bdnf) and serotonin in hippocampus compared to the control and saffron-only-treated rats (p< 0.05). neurotrophin-3 mrna in soleus muscle was higher in the saffron plus exercise group than rats in the other three groups (p< 0.05). hippocampus 5-hydroxyindolacetic acid and short-term memory were significantly greater in all the intervention groups than in the control group (p< 0.05).conclusions: saffron, combined with endurance exercise, synergistically increased hippocampus bdnf, serotonin, and muscular neurotrophin-3 mrna in wistar rats.