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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 297/4/R1188    most recent 00396.2009v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Google Scholar Articles by Murphy, E. A. Articles by Ghaffar, A. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Murphy, E. A. Articles by Ghaffar, A.

Articles

Benefits of oat β-glucan and sucrose feedings on infection and macrophage antiviral resistance following exercise stress

¹Division of Applied Physiology, Department of Exercise Science, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and ²Department of Pathology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina

Submitted July 10, 2009 ; accepted in final form August 14, 2009

Oat β-glucan can counteract the exercise-induced increased risk for upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) in mice, which is at least partly mediated by its effects on lung macrophages. Substantial evidence in humans indicates that carbohydrate-containing sports drinks can offset the decreased immune function associated with stressful exercise. However, no studies in animals or humans have directly examined their effects on URTI using a controlled virus-challenge model. We examined the effects of sucrose feedings alone and in combination with oat β-glucan on susceptibility to infection and on macrophage antiviral resistance in mice following stressful exercise. These effects were also examined in rested, nonimmunocompromised control mice. Mice were assigned to one of four groups: H₂O (water), sucrose (S), oat β-glucan (OβG), and sucrose + oat β-glucan (S+OβG). OβG and S treatments consisted of a solution of 50% OβG and 6% sucrose, respectively, and were administered in drinking water for 10 consecutive days. Exercise consisted of a treadmill run to fatigue performed on three consecutive days. Mice were then intranasally inoculated with a standardized dose of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) and monitored for morbidity and mortality for 21 days. Additional mice were used to determine macrophage antiviral resistance. In the exercise experiment, S, OβG, and S+OβG all reduced morbidity (P < 0.05), while only S+OβG reduced mortality (P < 0.05). Macrophage antiviral resistance was also increased in S, OβG, and S+OβG treatments (P < 0.05). In resting controls, S and S+OβG reduced morbidity and mortality (P < 0.05) and showed a trend toward increased macrophage antiviral resistance. There was no significant additive effect of S and OβG in either control or exercised animals. These data extend our previous work on the benefits of oat β-glucan to show that sucrose feedings have similar effects on susceptibility to respiratory infection and macrophage antiviral resistance in both resting controls and following exercise stress.

carbohydrate; immune function; mice; nutrition