Figure 4.

Cytokines secreted from peripheral tissue organs during exercise elicit pro-cognitive effects. The skeletal muscle secrets both lactate and irisin. In particular, both lactate and irisin can separately or concomitantly are engaged in modulating synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus. The adipose tissue secretes apelin, which reduces neuroinflammatory responses and promotes mitochondrial biogenesis in the neurons, respectively. The liver secretes β-hydroxybutyrate, a natural NLRP3 inhibitor, which can suppress the neuroinflammatory response. β-hydroxybutyrate can also promote neuroplasticity alongside with upregulating BDNF expression in the hippocampus. These exerkines are shown to be pro-cognitive by modulating both mood-related behaviours and learning and memory performance in the rodent studies. Created with BioRender.com.