THE EFFECT OF EIGHT-WEEK HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING (HIIT) AND CAFFEINE INTAKE ON THE PGC-1Α EXPRESSION IN SOLEUS MUSCLE IN DIABETIC RATS INDUCED STREPTOZOTOCIN

Background: The relationship between low PGC-1α expression and several metabolic diseases such as diabetes and obesity has been identified. This study investigates the effect of eight-week high intensity interval training (HIIT) and caffeine intake on mitochondrial biogenesis in soleus muscle in diabetic rats induced Streptozotocin. Methods: In a clinical-interventional animal study, 50 male rats were randomly assigned to 5 equal groups (control group(C), diabetes group(D), diabetes + caffeine group(D+Caf), diabetes + training group(D+T), diabetes + training + caffeine group(D+CAF+T)) and subjected to 8 weeks of caffeine supplementation (70 mg / kg of caffeine powder was injected five days each week) and 8 weeks of 5 sessions per week with 6 to 12 times, 2-min intervals with intensity of 85-90% of maximal speed. Blood was collected directly from the left ventricle to measure blood glucose levels. The soleus muscle of the left leg was extracted and PGC-1α measured by Western Blot method. Independent t-tests, two-way analysis of variance, and Eta squared (p <0.05) were used to analyze the data. Results: The results showed that induction of diabetes significantly increased blood glucose (P <0.01) and significantly decreased mRNAPGC-1α (P = 0.002). Also, both high-intensity interval training (p = 0.001) and caffeine supplementation (p = 0.03) significantly increased mRNAPGC-1α. Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, it is possible to suggest the use of HIIT and caffeine consumption as an effective intervention in increasing mitochondrial biogenesis in diabetics. However, a clear statement in this regard requires further research in this area.