The effect of eight weeks of aerobic exercise and garlic supplementation on brain tissue inflammatory markers and sensorimotor function in rats with Parkinson's disease

Subject Areas : Journal of Physical Activity and Hormones

Mohammad Reza Khosravi ¹ , Seyed Ali Hosseini ² , Ghobad Hasanpoor ³ , Mehdi Roozbehani ⁴

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Received: 2025-08-26 Accepted : 2025-10-01 Published : 2025-10-02

Keywords: Exercise, Garlic, Inflammation, Parkinson's Disease,

Abstract :

Introduction: Inflammation of the nervous system and impaired sensory-motor function reduce the quality of life of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Although the role of exercise and medicinal plants in the treatment of neurological diseases has been demonstrated, the anti-inflammatory effects of aerobic exercise (AT) and garlic supplementation (G) on this pathway are not yet well understood. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of eight weeks of AT and GS on inflammatory markers of brain tissue and sensory-motor function in rats with PD.

Material & Methods: In this experimental study, 32 parkinson rats were divided into groups (1) Res, (2) AT, (3) G, and (4) AT+G by injection of 2 mg/kg IP of reserpine. Also, to investigate the effects of PD induction on research variables, 8 healthy rats were placed in the healthy control (HC) group. AT was performed for eight weeks, five sessions per week, each session lasting 15-48 minutes and at a speed of 10-24 meters per minute. Also, 500 mg/kg/day of garlic aqueous extract was fed to rats daily. One-way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc test were used to analyze the data in SPSS 26 software.

Results: In the AT, G and AT+G groups, TLR and CRP values were significantly lower, and the slope of balance maintenance and the time of balance maintenance were significantly longer than in the Res group (P=0.001). Also, in the AT+G group, TLR values were significantly lower, the slope of balance maintenance and the time of balance maintenance were significantly longer than in the AT and G groups. The time of balance maintenance in the AT+G group was significantly longer than in the AT group (P≤0.05).

Conclusion: It seems that although AT and G alone have effects on reducing inflammation in brain tissue and improving sensory-motor function in conditions that induce PD, the combination of these two interventions appears to enhance each other's effects.

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