Table 1.
Recent pre-clinical (part A) and clinical (part B) studies related to the effects of resistance (or strength) training on the brain.
| Part A-Pre-Clinical Studies | ||||
| Aim | Species | Results | Year of Publication and Reference | |
| 1 | Investigate the influence of aerobic and resistance training on the Central Nervous System in an experimental animal model of multiple sclerosis. | Mouse | Although aerobic exercise showed more prominent effects, strength exercise also contributed to neuroprotective mechanisms by modulating inflammatory parameters and oxidative stress. | 2017, [7] |
| 2 | Investigate the effects of strength and aerobic training on mitochondrial and inflammatory parameters in an experimental animal model of Parkinson’s disease. | Mouse | Both training protocols induced neuroprotection by modulating mitochondrial function and cerebral inflammation parameters. | 2015, [8] |
| 3 | Investigate the effects of two types of physical training on depressive-like behavior, and levels of proBDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), TrkB, in a mouse model of Parkinson’s disease. | Rat | Both types of physical exercise prevented depressive-like behavior and restored levels of proBDNF, BDNF, and TrkB in the striatum and hippocampus. | 2014, [9] |
| 4 | Investigate the effects of the nandrolone decanoate during a strength exercise program on cell proliferation, apoptotic status, and BDNF expression in the rat hippocampus. | Rat | The increase in the immunoreactivity of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 (DG and CA3) induced by strength exercise was diminished by nandrolone decanoate. | 2014, [47] |
| 5 | Investigate the effect of aerobic and resistance training on spatial memory and hippocampal plasticity in aging rats. | Rat | Both aerobic and strength training improved spatial memory by distinct molecular neuroplastic mechanisms. | 2017, [48] |
| 6 | Verify the effects of resistance exercise on memory and motor co-ordination in male and female rats treated with monosodium glutamate. | Rat | Resistance exercise reduced memory and motor co-ordination impairment caused by monosodium glutamate. | 2017, [67] |
| 7 | Investigate the effects of aerobic, resistance, and combined exercise on Alzheimer’s disease animal model. | Rat | All training models reduced disease oxidative stress scores, increased antioxidant activity, and improved brain plasticity. | 2017, [68] |
| 8 | Investigate the effects of resistance exercise on the number of seizures, long-term memory, and expression of signaling proteins in rats with epilepsy. | Rat | Resistance exercise reduced memory deficits in rats with epilepsy and increased Insulin-like growth factor 1 and BDNF levels, as well as signaling protein activation. | 2017, [69] |
| 9 | Investigate the expression of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines and signaling proteins in aged rats undertaking aerobic and resistance exercise. | Rat | No significant difference in cytokines or signaling proteins in the cortex and hippocampus of old rats in response to resistance training was seen. | 2018, [70] |
| 10 | Verify the effects of resistance exercise training on hypothalamic glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP-1R) levels and its related signaling mechanisms in type II diabetes (T2DM). | Rat | Resistance training increased GLP-1R mRNA, protein kinase A, glucose transporter 2, and AKT and significantly decreased PKC-iota). Antioxidant enzymes and apoptotic factors were significantly improved in the hypothalamus. | 2019, [71] |
| 11 | Investigate the effects of aerobic and resistance exercise on the recognition memory and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in a beta-amyloid (Aβ) model of AD in rats. | Rat | Both aerobic and strength training improved the exploration index. AChE activity increased in the Aβ-injected sedentary group but declined in the aerobic and resistance exercise groups. | 2019, [72] |
| Part B-Clinical Studies | ||||
| 1 | Investigate the effects of acute resistance exercise to-fatigue on serum BDNF levels in adult men (serum). | Human | Resistance exercise provided the necessary stimulus to increase peripheral serum BDNF. | 2017, [43] |
| 2 | Identify the effects of strength training on hippocampus volume in older women. | Human | Hippocampus volume was significantly increased after strength exercise. | 2017, [73] |
| 3 | Compare full-body versus split-body resistance training on BDNF levels in adult men. | Human | Resistance exercise increased BDNF levels in the serum of adult men. | 2018, [74] |
| 4 | Compare the response of neurotrophic factors NT3, NT4, and BDNF following one session of high-intensity exercise, resistance training, or both, in physically inactive overweight adult men. | Human | Acute resistance training and combined exercise increased neurotrophic factors in physically inactive overweight adults. | 2018, [75] |
| 5 | Investigate the effects of aerobic, resistance, and combined training on resting serum BDNF levels in adolescents with overweight and obesity. | Human | All training models increased BDNF levels. | 2018, [76] |
| 6 | Verify the effects of exercise combined with low- and high-intensity strength exercise in the brain. | Human | Strength exercise weakened aerobic exercise-induced cognitive improvements and hippocampal neurogenesis. | 2018, [77] |
Systematic database searches of PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Medline were performed to identify peer-reviewed studies from the 2000s. Combinations of keywords related to brain, disease, aerobic/resistance, or strength physical exercise were used.