TABLE 5.
Exercise effects on the cholinergic and monoaminergic systems in Alzheimer’s disease.
| Subjects | Exercise type | Exercise intensity (Speed or other parameters) | Exercise duration | Mode of action | Relevance to AD | References |
| THY-Tau22 mice | Voluntary wheel running | ND | 9 months | ↑ Cholinergic neurons | ↓ Tau and neuroinflammation ↑ Cognition | Belarbi et al., 2011 |
| Aβ1–40-induced rats | Swimming (and/or donepezil hydrochloride) | Non-load | 10∼60 min/session, 7 sessions/week for 4 weeks | ↓ AChE ↑ ChAT | ↓ Neuronal loss ↑ Cognition | Jiangbo and Liyun, 2018 |
| Aβ25–35-induced rats | Treadmill running or climbing the ladder | 10∼20 m/min 10∼100% BW | 20∼40 min/session, 4 sessions/week for 8 weeks | ↓ AChE | ↑ Cognition | Farzi et al., 2019 |
| Aβ1–42-induced rats | Treadmill running (and/or Probiotics) | 10∼16 m/min | 40∼85 min/session, 5 sessions/week for 8 weeks | ↑ ACh | ↓ Amyloid plaques and neuronal death ↑ Cognition | Shamsipour et al., 2021 |
| Old Wistar rats | Voluntary wheel running | 4∼15 rpm | 5∼10 min/session, 5 sessions/week for 5 weeks | ↑ NE, 5-HT, and DA | ↓ Oxidative stress ↑ Cognition | Ramis et al., 2021 |
| MCI patients | Stationary cycling | 70% VO2max | 6 min/session | ↑ NE | ↑ Cognition | Segal et al., 2012 |
| Aged APP/PS1 mice | Treadmill running | 10 m/min | 20∼60 min/session, 5 sessions/week for 4 weeks | ↑ Serotonergic neurons and cholinergic neurons | ↓ Aβ1–40, Aβ1–42 and neuroinflammation ↑ Cognition | Ke et al., 2011 |
| TgF344-AD rats | Treadmill running | 18 m/min | 45 min/session, 3 sessions/week for 8 months | ↑ 5-HT and 5-HT6R | ↓ Aβ, tau, oxidative stress and neuroinflammation ↑ Cognition | Wu et al., 2020 |
| Aβ25–35-induced rats | Treadmill running | 60∼70% VO2max | 30 min/session | ↑ DA | ↑ Cognition | Rossi Dare et al., 2020 |
| LPS-induced rats | Swimming (and/or vitamin D) | ND | 30 min/session, 7 sessions/week for 4 weeks | ↑ DA | ↓ Aβ, tau, oxidative stress and neuroinflammation ↑ Cognition | Medhat et al., 2020 |
5-HT, 5-hydroxytryptamine; Aβ, amyloid-β; ACh, acetylcholine; AChE, acetylcholinesterase; BW, body weight; DA, dopamine; LPS, lipopolysaccharide; MCI, mild cognitive impairment; ND, not determined; VO2max, maximum oxygen uptake.