The effect of six weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and endurance on blood glucose and Follistatin protein content in the left ventricular tissue of the heart of male rats with type 1 diabetes

Follistatin is a key protein in the regulation of muscles (heart and Skeletal) hypertrophy that type 1 diabetes can lead to dysfunction. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of six weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and endurance on blood glucose and Follistatin protein content in the left ventricular tissue of the heart of male rats with type 1 diabetes. In this study, 18 head 2 Sprague-Dawley male rats with a mean weight of 300±20 g were selected. After becoming type 1 diabetic through streptozotocin solution, they were randomly divided into 3 groups: 1) HIIT training 2) endurance training and 3) control (6 heads per group). Exercise groups exercised 4 days a week for 6 weeks according to HIIT and endurance training programs. One-way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc test were used to analyze the data. Six weeks of HIIT and endurance training resulted in a significant decrease in blood glucose levels (p=0.0001) and a significant increase in Follistatin protein content (p=0.0001) compared to the control group. HIIT and endurance training lowered blood glucose levels, indicating that these two types of training could be appropriate and non-invasive treatment for control diabetes. Also, endurance training and HIIT training increased the intracellular content of Follistatin protein, which can be useful for physiological hypertrophy and reduction of cardiac pathological complications, including diabetic cardiomyopathy.