Ried Karin, Paye Yeah, Beale David, Sali Avni
National Institute of Integrative Medicine, Melbourne, Victoria 3122, Australia.
Department of General Practice, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5000, Australia.
Exp Ther Med. 2025 Feb 26;29(4):86. doi: 10.3892/etm.2025.12836. eCollection 2025 Apr.
Arterial stiffness is a cardiovascular risk factor that increases with age. Kyolic aged garlic extract has been shown to reduce arterial stiffness, while normalizing blood pressure, cholesterol and blood thickness. The present study hypothesized that increased flexibility of arteries could lead to slower blood flow and increased oxygen uptake and overall aerobic fitness. The present 12 week trial aimed to assess the effect of Kyolic aged garlic extract (AGE) on arterial stiffness, aerobic fitness, lactate threshold, recovery from muscle soreness and cardiovascular proteomic biomarkers in middle-aged (40-65 years) endurance athletes with elevated arterial stiffness. A total of 75 middle-aged recreational endurance athletes completed the trial, after being randomly allocated for 12 weeks to either the placebo or Kyolic aged garlic extract groups: low-dose cohort 1 (n=37), 2 capsules/day containing 1.2 g AGE powder and 1.2 mg S-allylcysteine (SAC); and the high-dose cohort 2 (n=38), 4 capsules/day of 2.4 g AGE powder and 2.4 mg SAC. Arterial stiffness was assessed through pulse wave velocity measurements and aerobic fitness was measured by volume-maximal-oxygen-consumption (VOmax) and lactate thresholds during high-intensity exercise using a cycle-ergometer-test-station, as well as measuring the levels of muscle fatigue and recovery time at 12 weeks compared with the baseline results. Urinary proteomic analysis was performed in a subgroup of participants and measured the levels of certain relevant proteins used as biomarkers for risk of cardiovascular events, at 12 weeks compared with baseline results. The Kyolic aged garlic extract group significantly improved their aerobic fitness, as was evidenced by increased VOmax, increased aerobic power, higher lactate threshold-to-oxygen uptake, higher lactate threshold-to-power output and quicker recovery times compared with the placebo group. Pulse wave velocity, a measure for arterial flexibility, was improved in the Kyolic aged garlic extract group compared with the placebo. The proteomics analysis demonstrated that a subset of polypeptides associated with cardiovascular risk, such as heart attacks and stroke, decreased in the Kyolic aged garlic extract group at 12 weeks compared with the baseline, which was contrary to the effects observed in the placebo group. Therefore, the results of the present study suggested that Kyolic aged garlic extract significantly improved aerobic fitness, lactate threshold, recovery and cardiovascular proteomic biomarkers in middle-aged endurance athletes within 12 weeks. The present clinical trial was registered on 11/03/2020 at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry (trial registration no. ACTRN12620000340932).
动脉僵硬度是一种随年龄增长而增加的心血管危险因素。已经证明，Kyolic aged大蒜提取物可以降低动脉僵硬度，同时使血压、胆固醇和血液黏稠度恢复正常。本研究假设，动脉柔韧性的提高可能会导致血流减慢、氧气摄取增加以及整体有氧适能提高。本为期12周的试验旨在评估Kyolic aged大蒜提取物（AGE）对动脉僵硬度、有氧适能、乳酸阈值、肌肉酸痛恢复以及心血管蛋白质组学生物标志物的影响，这些研究对象为动脉僵硬度升高的中年（40 - 65岁）耐力运动员。共有75名中年休闲耐力运动员完成了该试验，他们被随机分配到安慰剂组或Kyolic aged大蒜提取物组，为期12周：低剂量队列1（n = 37），每天2粒胶囊，含1.2克AGE粉末和1.2毫克S - 烯丙基半胱氨酸（SAC）；高剂量队列2（n = 38），每天4粒胶囊，含2.4克AGE粉末和2.4毫克SAC。通过脉搏波速度测量评估动脉僵硬度，使用自行车测力计测试站在高强度运动期间通过最大摄氧量（VOmax）和乳酸阈值测量有氧适能，并与基线结果相比，在12周时测量肌肉疲劳水平和恢复时间。对部分参与者进行了尿液蛋白质组分析，并与基线结果相比，在12周时测量了用作心血管事件风险生物标志物的某些相关蛋白质的水平。与安慰剂组相比，Kyolic aged大蒜提取物组的有氧适能显著提高，表现为VOmax增加、有氧功率增加、乳酸阈值与摄氧量之比更高、乳酸阈值与功率输出之比更高以及恢复时间更快。与安慰剂相比，Kyolic aged大蒜提取物组中作为动脉柔韧性指标的脉搏波速度有所改善。蛋白质组学分析表明，与心血管风险（如心脏病发作和中风）相关的一部分多肽在12周时，与基线相比，在Kyolic aged大蒜提取物组中有所减少，这与在安慰剂组中观察到的效果相反。因此，本研究结果表明，Kyolic aged大蒜提取物在12周内显著改善了中年耐力运动员的有氧适能、乳酸阈值、恢复情况以及心血管蛋白质组学生物标志物。本临床试验于2020年3月11日在澳大利亚新西兰临床试验注册中心注册（试验注册号：ACTRN12620000340932）。
