An evaluation of acute excercise as a cognitive enhancer : assessment of underlying mechanisms

Abstract

Human and rodent studies demonstrate that physical exercise targets many aspects of brain function and has positive effects on overall brain health. The majority of studies published in this field focus on long-term exercise with fewer studies assessing the effects of acute exercise on cognitive function. It is as yet unclear whether exercise-induced improvements in cognitive function are task-specific or brain-region specific. Moreover, the mechanisms underlying these effects of exercise are not well understood and consequently, the therapeutic applicability of exercise regimens or the development of pharmacomimetics of exercise for improving and maintaining cognitive function has been limited. In rodents, this exercise-induced improvement in learning is accompanied by an increase in synaptic plasticity in specific areas of the brain, with brain-derived neurotrophin factor (BDNF) being implicated as a possible regulator of these improvements. In humans, an increase in peripheral BDNF concentration has been frequently reported after exercise. BDNF is a neurotrophin that binds to the tropomyosin-related kinase B (TrkB) receptor resulting in phosphorylation of the receptor and activation of several downstream signalling cascades, which are important to synaptic transmission.