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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2014 Mar 13.
Published in final edited form as: Compr Physiol. 2013 Jan;3(1):403–428. doi: 10.1002/cphy.c110063

Figure 10.

Figure 10

Proposed mechanism by which exercise enhances cognitive function by engaging aspects of cellular energy metabolism. There is a crucial association between metabolic energy and synaptic plasticity, in which brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) plays a crucial role. The effects of exercise on hippocampal BDNF would activate several molecular systems involved in the metabolism of energy, thereby modulating the capacity of the synapse to process information relevant to cognitive function. In particular, molecular systems such as uMtCK, AMPK, and UCP-2 may work at the interface between energy and synaptic plasticity. Energy related-molecules can interact with BDNF to modulate synaptic plasticity and cognitive function. Therefore, BDNF appears to be a central integrator for the effects of exercise on synaptic markers and energy metabolic processes to affect cognitive function. Reprinted, with permission, from reference (74), p. 2284.