effects of progressive aerobic training on serum and gastric acylated ghrelin, igf-1 and body weight in female rats

Background: it is generally believed that physical activity can lead to increased food intake, where as some studies state that exercise can have inhibitory effects on appetite and calorie intake. objectives: the purpose of this study was to examine the changes in the level of gastric and serum ghrelin, body weight, and serum igf-1 after a period of progressive aerobic training (pat) in female rats. methods: after one week of familiarization with treadmill running, 16 adult female rats were randomly assigned to two groups: control (n = 8) and aerobic exercise (n = 8). the exercise protocol consisted of progressive aerobic running on the treadmill for three months (5 days a week). forty-eight hours after the last exercise session, the animals were sacrificed. serum levels of ghrelin, igf-1, and ghrelin content in the gastric tissue were measured using the elisa method. an independent t-test was used for comparison of data between the two groups. results: the results indicated that three months of pat had no significant effect on gastric (p = 0.51) and serum acylated ghrelin (p = 0.15), weight changes (p = 0.42), and serum igf-1 (p = 0.56) compared to the control group. conclusions: three months of pat in female animals had no effects on ghrelin level, food intake and weight loss, and serum igf-1 level. it seems that there are sex-specific hormonal and appetite responses to progressive aerobic training.