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Regular Exercise Enhances Task-Based Industriousness in Laboratory Rats.

ABSTRACT: Individuals vary greatly in their willingness to select and persist in effortful tasks, even when high-effort will knowingly result in high-reward. Individuals who select and successively complete effortful, goal-directed tasks can be described as industrious. Trying to increase one's industriousness is desirable from a productivity standpoint, yet intrinsically challenging given that effort expenditure is generally aversive. Here we show that in laboratory rats, a basic physical exercise regimen (20 min/day, five days/week) is sufficient to increase industriousness across a battery of subsequent testing tasks. Exercised rats outperformed their non-exercised counterparts in tasks designed to tax effort expenditure, strategic decision-making, problem solving and persistence. These increases in performance led to quicker reward obtainment and greater reward gain over time, and could not be accounted for simply by increased locomotor activity. Our results suggest that a basic exercise regimen can enhance effortful goal-directed behaviour in goal-directed tasks, which highlights a potential productivity benefit of staying physically active.

SUBMITTER: Laurence NC

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4470589 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Regular Exercise Enhances Task-Based Industriousness in Laboratory Rats.

Laurence Nicholas C NC Labuschagne Lisa G LG Lura Brent G BG Hillman Kristin L KL

PloS one 20150617 6

Individuals vary greatly in their willingness to select and persist in effortful tasks, even when high-effort will knowingly result in high-reward. Individuals who select and successively complete effortful, goal-directed tasks can be described as industrious. Trying to increase one's industriousness is desirable from a productivity standpoint, yet intrinsically challenging given that effort expenditure is generally aversive. Here we show that in laboratory rats, a basic physical exercise regime ...[more]

PMID: 26083255

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Project description:A collection of metabolic disorders and neurodegenerative diseases linked to oxidative stress and neuroinflammation frequently affect postmenopausal women or estrogen deprivation. Recent research has focused on alternative therapies that can enhance these women's quality of life. This study set out to investigate the effects of physical exercise (EX) and intermittent fasting (IF) on oxidants/antioxidants, inflammatory cytokines, neurotransmitters, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the cortex of rats. Additionally, it sought to assess the response to oxidative stress and neuroinflammation in the brains of rats following ovariectomy (OVX) and the potential mechanisms of these interventions. Fifty female rats were divided into one of the following groups 30 days after bilateral OVX: Control, OVX, OVX + EX, OVX + IF, and OVX + EX + IF groups. The rats in the Control and OVX groups continued their normal activities and had unrestricted access to food and water, but the rats in the OVX + EX and OVX + EX + IF groups had a 4-week treadmill training program, and the rats in the OXV + IF and OVX + EX + IF groups fasted for 13 h each day. The rats were killed, the cerebral cortex was taken, tissue homogenates were created, and various parameters were estimated using these homogenates. The results show that ovariectomized rats had decreased levels of neurotransmitters (DA, NE, and SE), acetylcholinesterase, brain GSH (glutathione), SOD (superoxide dismutase), catalase, GPx (glutathione peroxidase), and TAC (total antioxidant capacity), as well as elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokines and mediators (TNF-α, IL-1β, Cox-2). While ovariectomy-induced declines in neurotransmitters, enzymatic and nonenzymatic molecules, neuroinflammation, and oxidative brain damage were considerably mitigated and prevented by treadmill exercise and intermittent fasting, BDNF was significantly increased. These results suggest that ovariectomy can impair rat neuronal function and regular treadmill exercise and intermittent fasting seem to protect against ovariectomy-induced neuronal impairment through the inhibition of oxidative stress and neuroinflammation and increased BDNF levels in the brain cortex. However, combining regular exercise and intermittent fasting did not provide additional benefits compared to either treatment alone.

Dataset Information

Regular Exercise Enhances Task-Based Industriousness in Laboratory Rats.

Publications

Regular Exercise Enhances Task-Based Industriousness in Laboratory Rats.

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