Paruk T, Rauch L, Jankiewicz M, Van Breda K, Stein D J, King M
Department of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, University of Cape Town, South Africa.
Division of Biomedical Engineering, Department of Human Biology, University of Cape Town, South Africa.
Sports Med Health Sci. 2020 May 28;2(2):89-94. doi: 10.1016/j.smhs.2020.05.004. eCollection 2020 Jun.
Participation in ultra-endurance events has increased in recent years and requires extreme levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Moderate levels of MVPA have been associated with increased brain volume but the effects of extreme levels of MVPA on brain volume is unknown. As a result, we sought to compare the brains of those who engage in extremely high levels of MVPA with those who are sedentary using magnetic resonance imaging. We performed whole brain volumetric analyses and voxel-based morphometry on 12 ultra-endurance athletes (1078.75 ± 407.86 min of MVPA/week) and 9 sedentary persons (18.0 ± 56.9 min of MVPA/week). Whole-brain analyses revealed that those who participate in ultra-endurance training have increased grey (< 0.0001), white ( = 0.031), and total matter volume ( < 0.0001), while regional analyses revealed that ultra-endurance athletes have smaller regional grey matter volume in the right primary sensory and motor cortex, inferior and middle frontal gyrus, and left thalamus. Future research is warranted to determine why ultra-endurance athletes have lower regional volumes in these areas despite having overall increased grey and white matter volumes.
近年来，参加超长耐力赛事的人数有所增加，这类赛事需要极高强度的中等至剧烈身体活动（MVPA）。中等强度的MVPA与脑容量增加有关，但极高强度的MVPA对脑容量的影响尚不清楚。因此，我们试图通过磁共振成像比较从事极高强度MVPA的人群与久坐不动人群的大脑。我们对12名超长耐力运动员（每周MVPA为1078.75±407.86分钟）和9名久坐者（每周MVPA为18.0±56.9分钟）进行了全脑容积分析和基于体素的形态测量。全脑分析显示，参加超长耐力训练的人灰质（<0.0001）、白质（=0.031）和总物质体积（<0.0001）均有所增加，而区域分析显示，超长耐力运动员右侧初级感觉和运动皮层、额下回和额中回以及左侧丘脑的区域灰质体积较小。有必要进行进一步研究，以确定为什么超长耐力运动员尽管整体灰质和白质体积增加，但这些区域的体积却较小。
