Su Yiping, Su Zhanguo
Faculty of Sports and Exercise Science, University of Malaya, 50603, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Department of Physical Education, Chengdu Normal University, 611130 Chengdu, China.
Clin Exp Med. 2025 Aug 27;25(1):306. doi: 10.1007/s10238-025-01852-3.
Exercise has long been recognized for its systemic health benefits, including modulation of the immune system. Contemporary scientific inquiry has increasingly turned toward understanding the regulatory effects of exercise on immune cell dynamics within muscle tissue, highlighting their potential role in facilitating tissue repair and modulating chronic disease pathways. Following acute bouts of exercise, especially those involving eccentric or high-intensity contractions, muscle fibers experience micro-damage that triggers a well-orchestrated immune response. This phenomenon entails a coordinated, time-sensitive accumulation of immune effector cells-namely neutrophils, macrophages, and T lymphocytes-within compromised muscle tissue. Through the release of immunoregulatory and regenerative mediators like cytokines and growth factors, these cells actively participate in coordinating tissue repair by eliminating cellular debris and resolving inflammation.Macrophage polarization from a pro-inflammatory (M1) to an anti-inflammatory (M2) phenotype is particularly crucial in coordinating effective muscle repair and preventing fibrosis. However, dysregulation of this immune response, such as persistent inflammation or impaired immune cell transition, can hinder regeneration and contribute to the pathogenesis of chronic conditions like sarcopenia, insulin resistance, and muscular dystrophies. Moreover, in chronic disease states, immune cell infiltration into muscle may become maladaptive, exacerbating tissue damage and metabolic dysfunction.Regular moderate-intensity exercise appears to modulate this immune infiltration in a way that enhances repair mechanisms while reducing chronic inflammation, highlighting a potential therapeutic avenue for managing muscle-related pathologies. In-depth insight into the molecular and cellular crosstalk between physical activity and immune cell regulation in muscle tissue forms the basis for crafting specialized therapeutic strategies aimed at facilitating muscle regeneration and limiting the development of chronic pathological conditions. Through a detailed evaluation of exercise-elicited immune dynamics, this review underscores the dichotomous functions of immune cell infiltration in supporting muscle regeneration and in contributing to strategies for chronic disease prevention and management.
长期以来，运动对全身健康的益处已得到认可，包括对免疫系统的调节作用。当代科学研究越来越倾向于了解运动对肌肉组织内免疫细胞动态的调节作用，突出了它们在促进组织修复和调节慢性疾病途径方面的潜在作用。在急性运动发作后，尤其是那些涉及离心或高强度收缩的运动，肌肉纤维会受到微损伤，从而引发精心编排的免疫反应。这种现象需要免疫效应细胞（即中性粒细胞、巨噬细胞和T淋巴细胞）在受损肌肉组织中进行协调的、对时间敏感的积累。通过释放细胞因子和生长因子等免疫调节和再生介质，这些细胞通过清除细胞碎片和消除炎症来积极参与协调组织修复。巨噬细胞从促炎（M1）表型向抗炎（M2）表型的极化在协调有效的肌肉修复和预防纤维化方面尤为关键。然而，这种免疫反应的失调，如持续性炎症或免疫细胞转变受损，会阻碍再生，并导致肌肉减少症、胰岛素抵抗和肌肉萎缩症等慢性疾病的发病机制。此外，在慢性疾病状态下，免疫细胞浸润到肌肉中可能会变得适应不良，加剧组织损伤和代谢功能障碍。定期进行中等强度运动似乎可以调节这种免疫浸润，增强修复机制，同时减少慢性炎症，这突出了管理肌肉相关疾病的潜在治疗途径。深入了解体育活动与肌肉组织中免疫细胞调节之间的分子和细胞相互作用，为制定旨在促进肌肉再生和限制慢性病理状况发展的专门治疗策略奠定了基础。通过对运动引发的免疫动态进行详细评估，本综述强调了免疫细胞浸润在支持肌肉再生以及在慢性疾病预防和管理策略中的双重作用。
