Veschetti Laura, Patuzzo Cristina, Treccani Mirko, Moron Dalla Tor Lucas, Deiana Michela, Cheri Samuele, Griggio Francesca, Lippi Giuseppe, Schena Federico, De Santis Daniele, Dalle Carbonare Luca, Tarperi Cantor, Trabetti Elisabetta, Valenti Maria Teresa, Malerba Giovanni
Infections and Cystic Fibrosis Unit, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milano, Italy.
Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milano, Italy.
Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2025 Jan;35(1):e70018. doi: 10.1111/sms.70018.
Previous studies in sports science suggested that regular exercise has a positive impact on human health. However, the effects of endurance sports and their underlying mechanisms are still not completely understood. One of the main debates regards the modulation of immune dynamics in high-intensity exercise. As part of the "Run 4 Science" project in Verona, Italy, we conducted a single-cell RNA sequencing analysis on half-marathon amateur runners to investigate the transcriptional dynamics of peripheral blood mononuclear cells following endurance exercise. Blood samples were collected from four participants before and after running a half-marathon to carry out a comprehensive transcriptomic analysis of immune cells at the single-cell level. Our analysis revealed significant alterations in the transcriptional profiles following endurance physical exercise. Modulations in myeloid cells suggested the activation of stress response (6 related pathways, p < 0.04) and pathways related to viral processes (4 related pathways, p < 0.03), while in lymphoid cells they hinted to a shift towards immune activation (24 related pathways, p < 0.01). Additionally, transcriptional changes in platelets point to an activation of the coagulation process (5 related pathways, p < 0.005). Single-cell data was also analyzed following a pseudo-bulk approach (i.e., simulating a bulk RNAseq experiment) to gain further biological insights. Our findings suggest that a pseudo-bulk analysis could offer complementary findings to classical single-cell analysis methods and demonstrate that endurance physical exercise, such as running a half-marathon, induces substantial changes in the transcriptional dynamics of immune cells. These insights contribute to a better understanding of the immune modulation mediated by endurance exercise and may inform future training routines or nutritional guidelines based on individual gene expression levels.
体育科学领域先前的研究表明，规律运动对人类健康有积极影响。然而，耐力运动的效果及其潜在机制仍未被完全理解。主要争论点之一在于高强度运动中免疫动力学的调节。作为意大利维罗纳“为科学而跑”项目的一部分，我们对参加半程马拉松的业余跑步者进行了单细胞RNA测序分析，以研究耐力运动后外周血单个核细胞的转录动态。在四名参与者跑完半程马拉松前后采集血样，以便在单细胞水平上对免疫细胞进行全面的转录组分析。我们的分析显示，耐力体育锻炼后转录谱有显著变化。髓系细胞的调节表明应激反应相关途径（6条相关途径，p < 0.04）和病毒相关过程相关途径（4条相关途径，p < 0.03）被激活，而在淋巴细胞中则暗示向免疫激活转变（24条相关途径，p < 0.01）。此外，血小板的转录变化表明凝血过程被激活（5条相关途径，p < 0.005）。还采用了伪批量方法（即模拟批量RNA测序实验）对单细胞数据进行分析，以获得更多生物学见解。我们的研究结果表明，伪批量分析可以为经典单细胞分析方法提供补充性发现，并证明耐力体育锻炼，如跑完半程马拉松，会诱导免疫细胞转录动态发生实质性变化。这些见解有助于更好地理解耐力运动介导的免疫调节，并可能为基于个体基因表达水平的未来训练方案或营养指南提供参考。
