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The lifelong mental benefits of exercising have long been known, from improving learning in kids to staving off dementia in seniors. Yet how working up a sweat leads to better cognition is much less clear. A study in the Journal of Applied Physiology reveals that the key may lie in the body’s power supply.
Just as a booming metropolis might build new power plants to meet a rising need for electricity, our muscles respond to the demands of exercise by producing new mitochondria, the tiny structures inside cells that supply the body with energy. J. Mark Davis, a physiolo-
gist at the University of South Carolina, and his colleagues wondered if brain cells might do the same thing. While studying mice, they found that quantities of a signaling molecule, dubbed by researchers “a master regulator” of mitochondria production, increased in the brain after half an hour a day of treadmill running. The mice’s brain cells also had more mitochondrial DNA—distinct from the regular cellular DNA found in the nucleus—providing “gold standard” evidence of more mitochondria. It appears that the brain “adapts and changes by bringing more of these powerhouses” online, Davis says. The increased energy supply allows the brain to work faster and more efficiently.
The finding could help scientists understand how exercise staves off age- and disease-related declines in brain function, because neurons naturally lose mitochondria as we age, Davis explains. Although past research has shown that exercise encourages the growth of new neurons in certain regions, the widespread expansion of the energy supply could underlie the benefits of exercise to more general brain functions such as mood regulation and dementia prevention. “The evidence is accumulating rapidly that exercise keeps the brain younger,” Davis says.
This article was originally published with the title How Exercise Jogs the Brain.
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7 Comments
Add CommentCan the author clarify which sort of exercisze would have this effect - is it the short/sharp sprint type of exercise or the longer jog type ??
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisAllan, here is an ~10 minute video on all you need to know on the benefits of simply taking a walk every day:
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thishttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUaInS6HIGo&feature=player_embedded#!
To sparcboy:
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThanks but that is all very general.
This research links a biochemical signalling molecule from exercise to increases in mitochondria in the brain. So, there being two distinct types of muscle - fast and slow, (and not having access to the Journal myself), my question is whether the signalling molecule is known to be linked to fast or slow muscle generation. One would assume that treadmill running is probably the mouse equivalent of jogging but...??
During and after moderate exercise we experience stimulated blood circulation in all parts of the body, including the brain, don't we? So, this increased flow of oxygen and nutrients must be the cue, it must be the signal that more mitochondria are needed to process these substances. This signal is reliable in the long term, since exercise boosts energy production while reducing energy loss related to some diseases, obesity etc.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisUnderstandably, this theory is about the skeletal muscles. The heart muscle alone can also pump more blood into the brain, but this seems to be a short-term effect provided for emergencies (shorter than a repeated fast exercise). As for smooth muscles, we have no control over them, although digesting a light meal may also be healthy...
In upright position, it is probably better to exercise upper body parts which are closer to the brain, isn't it? And above all I recommend swimming.
Last but not least, during exercise your brain is forced to take a break from excessive and unproductive thinking (unlike the kind presented above!) This can be almost as regenerative as sleep.
Infinoe: "So, this increased flow of oxygen and nutrients must be the cue...."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisNo it is not - if you read the article the researchers "found that quantities of a signaling molecule, dubbed by researchers “a master regulator” of mitochondria production, increased in the brain..."
Allan, in the long chain of causes and effects some may be more fundamental (like blood circulation) and others may be technically more direct. The researchers made tests for the quantity of the signalling molecule because this was easier to do than later counting the number of mitochondria in brain cells. But where did those molecules come from and why?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSprint type exercises are generally recognized as developing speed (rather than endurance), provided they are done repeatedly and according to a good plan. Good luck!
Infinoe said "researchers made tests for the quantity of the signalling molecule because this was easier to do than later counting the number of mitochondria.."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisNot correct - the researchers also measured an increased amount of mitochondrial DNA.