Effect of High-Intensity Interval Training on Mitigating High-Fat Diet-Induced Damage in Rat Testicular Tissue

Abstract

A high-fat diet (HFD) is a risk factor for infertility, and regular exercise has been considered as a nonpharmacological intervention in the treatment of infertility. This study examined how high-intensity interval training (HIIT) affects testicular levels of malondialdehyde, total antioxidant capacity, glutathione (GSH), GSH peroxidase, catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase, glucose, lactate, total cholesterol (TC), and testicular and serum testosterone (TES) levels in rats fed with a HFD or normal diet (ND). Forty-four male Wistar rats were assigned to the ND control (NDC), HFD control (HFDC), HIIT+ND, and HIIT+HFD groups. The HIIT protocol involved treadmill running at an intensity of 85% to 90% maximal speed for 5 days weekly over 12 weeks. The results showed that the post-intervention GSH levels were lower in the HIIT+ND group than in the NDC and HFDC groups, and in the HIIT+HFD group than in the NDC group. The CAT activity and TC levels were lower in the HIIT+ND and HIIT+HFD groups than in the HFDC group. The glucose and lactate levels in the HIIT+ND and HIIT+HFD groups were lower than those in the NDC group. Moreover, the testicular TES levels in the HIIT+ND and HIIT+HFD groups were higher than those in the NDC and HFDC groups. No differences were observed in other biochemical variables among groups. HIIT could serve as a therapeutic approach to counteract HFD-induced testicular damage by modulating oxidative stress balance, potentially enhancing metabolic adaptation, and increasing testicular TES levels.