Merelim Ana Sofia, Zacca Rodrigo, Moreira-Gonçalves Daniel, Costa Paulo P, Baptista Liliana C
Faculty of Sports, Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure (CIAFEL), University of Porto (FADEUP), Porto, Portugal.
Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health (ITR), Porto, Portugal.
Front Med (Lausanne). 2025 Mar 5;12:1504786. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1504786. eCollection 2025.
Sarcopenia is a progressive and age-related skeletal muscle disease related to adverse health outcomes and to an increased economic burden. Recent evidence pinpoints the human gut microbiota (GM) as a contributing factor in the development of sarcopenia via the gut-muscle axis. To date, no study specifically analyzed the optimal type of exercise modality in older adults with sarcopenia considering the impact of GM composition in skeletal muscle mass and function. Therefore, the DEMGUTS study intents to explore the impact of three different exercise regimens on GM composition and gut-derived metabolites in older adults with sarcopenia.
This pilot single center three-arm parallel open-label randomized control trial (RCT) will randomly assign eligible participants to: (i) moderate aerobic exercise (AER); (ii) resistance exercise (RES); or (iii) concurrent exercise training (RES + AER). Participants will engage in a supervised center-based exercise intervention (12-weeks, 3 d/week, 60 min/d), and will be assessed at (i) baseline, (ii) end of intervention (14 weeks), and (iii) at close-out (26-weeks). The primary outcome will be the change in the relative abundance of and other short-chain fatty acid producing bacteria after the intervention (14-weeks). A set of complementary outcomes will also be assessed to broadly characterize the impact of each exercise intervention on body composition, skeletal muscle function, functional performance and general GM composition.
Unraveling the impact of these exercise regimens on GM is crucial to help clarify the optimal exercise modality to manage sarcopenia disease, contributing to clinical guidance and enhancing exercise prescription in older adults with sarcopenia.
https://clinicaltrials.gov/, identifier NCT06545123.
肌肉减少症是一种与年龄相关的进行性骨骼肌疾病，与不良健康后果和经济负担增加有关。最近的证据表明，人类肠道微生物群（GM）是通过肠-肌轴导致肌肉减少症发生的一个因素。迄今为止，尚无研究专门分析考虑到GM组成对骨骼肌质量和功能的影响，针对患有肌肉减少症的老年人的最佳运动方式类型。因此，DEMGUTS研究旨在探讨三种不同运动方案对患有肌肉减少症的老年人的GM组成和肠道衍生代谢物的影响。
这项单中心三臂平行开放标签随机对照试验（RCT）将把符合条件的参与者随机分配到：（i）中等强度有氧运动（AER）；（ii）抗阻运动（RES）；或（iii）联合运动训练（RES + AER）。参与者将参加基于中心的有监督的运动干预（12周，每周3天，每天60分钟），并将在（i）基线、（ii）干预结束时（14周）和（iii）随访结束时（26周）进行评估。主要结局将是干预后（14周） 及其他产生短链脂肪酸的细菌相对丰度的变化。还将评估一组补充结局，以广泛描述每种运动干预对身体成分、骨骼肌功能、功能表现和总体GM组成的影响。
阐明这些运动方案对GM的影响对于帮助明确管理肌肉减少症疾病的最佳运动方式至关重要，有助于为患有肌肉减少症的老年人提供临床指导并加强运动处方。
