Spirulina Supplementation Alleviates Intense Exercise-Induced Damage and Modulates Gut Microbiota in Mice.

BACKGROUND

, which are filamentous cyanobacteria, have gained significant popularity in the food industry, medicine, and aquaculture.

METHODS

In this study, our objective was to explore the influence of on the gut microbiota and exercise capacity of mice undergoing high-intensity exercise. Twenty-four male BALB/c mice were divided into four groups, with six mice in each group. These groups included the control group (Control, in which the mice received saline gavage and were permitted free movement), the exercise group (Running, in which the mice were gavaged with the same volume of saline and subjected to a structured exercise regimen), and the intervention groups (including and ). In the intervention groups, the mice were orally administered with at doses of 100 and 300 mg/kg/day for four weeks while simultaneously participating in the exercise protocol.

RESULTS

The results illustrated that the Running group mice subjected to intense exercise exhibited reduced weight and tension, acute damage to muscle and liver tissues, oxidative stress, and an imbalance in the gut microbiota compared with that of the Control group. However, high-concentration supplementation was found to increase the tensile strength of the exercise mice by 1.27 ± 0.19 fold ( < 0.05) and ameliorate muscle and liver damage. In the group, the levels of certain indicators related to muscle oxidative stress, including reactive oxygen species, total superoxide dismutase, and catalase, were decreased by 39 ± 5.32% ( < 0.01) and increased by 1.11 ± 0.17 fold and 1.19 ± 0.22 fold ( < 0.01) compared to the Running group. Additionally, a correlation analysis reveals that the alterations in gut microbiota induced by might be associated with the indicators of tension and oxidative stress.

CONCLUSIONS

Collectively, these findings point to the fact that can effectively mitigate the acute damage to muscles and the liver induced by intense exercise in mice by enhancing antioxidant capacity and regulating the gut microbiota, thereby providing novel insights into the mechanism underlying the enhancement of exercise function.