Background and Objective: Obesity is associated with chronic inflammation and activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and IL-1β cytokine in visceral adipose tissue. This study aimed to investigate the effect of eight weeks of intense interval swimming training combined with ginseng supplementation on the expression of NLRP3 and IL-1β genes in visceral adipose tissue of obese male rats.
Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 35 male rats were randomly divided into five groups including normal diet (ND), high-fat diet (HFD), high-fat diet with interval swimming training (HFDT), high-fat diet with ginseng (HFDGi), and high-fat diet with exercise and ginseng (HFDTGi) (7 rats per group). After eight weeks, the expression of NLRP3 and IL-1β genes was measured by Real-time PCR and the data were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance and Tukey test.
Results: The results showed that there was a significant difference between the research groups in terms of NLRP3 gene expression (P<0.001, F=12.852) and IL-1β (P<0.001, F=16.831). Also, interval swimming training, ginseng supplementation, and especially the combination of these two interventions significantly reduced the expression of the inflammatory genes NLRP3 and IL-1β compared to the high-fat diet group (P<0.05).
Conclusion: Eight weeks of interval swimming training combined with ginseng supplementation was associated with reduced expression of NLRP3 and IL-1β genes in the visceral adipose tissue of obese male rats. These findings suggest that the combination of these two interventions may reduce the expression of these genes related to the inflammatory response in visceral adipose tissue.