Flack Kyle D, Vítek Libor, Fry Christopher S, Stec David E, Hinds Terry D
Department of Dietetics and Human Nutrition, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United States.
4th Department of Internal Medicine and Institute of Medical Biochemistry and Laboratory Diagnostics, 1st Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and General University Hospital in Prague, Prague, Czechia.
Front Sports Act Living. 2023 Jan 11;4:1040687. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2022.1040687. eCollection 2022.
Exercise performance is dependent on many factors, such as muscular strength and endurance, cardiovascular capacity, liver health, and metabolic flexibility. Recent studies show that plasma levels of bilirubin, which has classically been viewed as a liver dysfunction biomarker, are elevated by exercise training and that elite athletes may have significantly higher levels. Other studies have shown higher plasma bilirubin levels in athletes and active individuals compared to general, sedentary populations. The reason for these adaptions is unclear, but it could be related to bilirubin's antioxidant properties in response to a large number of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that originates from mitochondria during exercise. However, the mechanisms of these are unknown. Current research has re-defined bilirubin as a metabolic hormone that interacts with nuclear receptors to drive gene transcription, which reduces body weight. Bilirubin has been shown to reduce adiposity and improve the cardiovascular system, which might be related to the adaption of bilirubin increasing during exercise. No studies have directly tested if elevating bilirubin levels can influence athletic performance. However, based on the mechanisms proposed in the present review, this seems plausible and an area to consider for future studies. Here, we discuss the importance of bilirubin and exercise and how the combination might improve metabolic health outcomes and possibly athletic performance.
运动表现取决于许多因素，如肌肉力量和耐力、心血管能力、肝脏健康以及代谢灵活性。最近的研究表明，传统上被视为肝功能障碍生物标志物的血浆胆红素水平会因运动训练而升高，精英运动员的水平可能显著更高。其他研究表明，与一般久坐人群相比，运动员和活跃个体的血浆胆红素水平更高。这些适应性变化的原因尚不清楚，但可能与胆红素在运动过程中对源自线粒体的大量活性氧（ROS）的抗氧化特性有关。然而，其机制尚不清楚。目前的研究已将胆红素重新定义为一种代谢激素，它与核受体相互作用以驱动基因转录，从而减轻体重。胆红素已被证明可减少肥胖并改善心血管系统，这可能与运动过程中胆红素水平升高的适应性变化有关。尚无研究直接测试提高胆红素水平是否会影响运动表现。然而，基于本综述中提出的机制，这似乎是合理的，也是未来研究可考虑的一个领域。在此，我们讨论胆红素与运动的重要性，以及两者结合如何可能改善代谢健康结果并可能提高运动表现。
