Endurance training promotes upregulation in microRNA-206 on blood and in human skeletal muscle

Abstract

Skeletal muscle is a highly plastic organ, capable of altering phenotype in response endurance training (ET). MicroRNAs (miR) are a class of short, non-coding RNA molecules that reportedly play a central role in regulating post-transcriptional. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of ET on the blood and in human skeletal muscle in miRNAs-206 levels. Twelve healthy volunteers were biopsied in vastus lateralis muscle and collected blood sample. Heart rate (HR), mean blood pressure (MBP), maximal exercise capacity (VO2peak), forearm blood flow (FBF) and forearm vascular conductance (FVC) were evaluated. MiR 206 levels were analyzed by real-time PCR. Endurance training was performed for 16 weeks. After ET, the individuals showed an increase of 97% in skeletal muscle and 128% on blood in miR 206 levels. These alterations were accompanied by decreased in resting bradycardia (12,5%), increased of VO2peak (18%), FBF (68%) and FVC (63%). These results show that in healthy subjects the miR-206 expression is up regulated after endurance training paralleled with improved of vascular function and endurance capacity, suggesting miR-206 may have a role on metabolism related with high performance.