Reversible reduction in brain myelin content upon marathon running
Here we use magnetic resonance imaging to study the impact of marathon running on brain structure in humans. We show that the signal for myelin water fraction-a surrogate of myelin content-is substantially reduced upon marathon running in specific brain regions involved in motor coordination and sensory and emotional integration, but recovers within two months. These findings suggest that brain myelin content is temporarily and reversibly diminished by severe exercise, a finding consistent with recent evidence from rodent studies that suggest that myelin lipids may act as glial energy reserves in extreme metabolic conditions.
Authors
- Mario Matute‐González (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4533-9345)
- Carlos Matute (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8672-711X)
- Pedro Ramos‐Cabrer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0368-7031)
- Daniel Padró (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3932-9351)
- Alberto Cabrera‐Zubizarreta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1028-3521)
- Alfredo Rodríguez-Antigüedad (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4566-2329)
Institutions
- Ikerbasque (ES)
- University of the Basque Country (ES)
- Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ES)
- CIC biomaGUNE (ES)
- BioCruces Health research Institute (ES)
- Hospital Clínic de Barcelona (ES)
- Hospital de Galdakao (ES)
- Hospital de Cruces (ES)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Metabolism
- Published
- 2025-03-24
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-025-01244-7
- Citations
- 23
- Primary Topic
- Neurogenesis and neuroplasticity mechanisms
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 30.33
Funders
- Eusko Jaurlaritza
- Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad
- Ikerbasque, Basque Foundation for Science
- Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
- Instituto de Salud Carlos III
- Agencia Estatal de Investigación