Changes In Inflammation Biomarkers Following Hiit Between Cisgender Participants

BACKGROUND: The inflammatory response to exercise is of interest when prescribing protocols for research, athletics, and clinical use. To date, there has been little research in the delineation of responses between the sexes. PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigation was to compare the post-exercise responses in circulating biomarkers of inflammation following HIIT between cisgender participants. METHODS: 13 female and 13 male participants completed two bouts of HIIT with blood collection before, immediately after, 1-hour post-exercise, and 24-hours post-exercise using a capillary blood collection device. Plasma samples were analyzed for IL-6, IL-8, and IL-10. Data are presented as mean fold change ± standard error. RESULTS: The female participants had a significantly higher change in IL-6 post-exercise than the male participants (6.66 ± 1.66 vs 3.13 ± 0.75; p < 0.001). There were no differences in IL-6 between the two groups during the recovery timepoints. Both groups increased in IL-8 concentration post-exercise (~2-fold) and through the recovery timepoints (~3-fold), however, there was no difference between groups. The female participants increased IL-10 concentration during the 1 h (1.07 ± 0.58, p < 0.001) and 24 h (2.09 ± 0.69, p < 0.001) recovery timepoints while the male participants had no significant changes. CONCLUSIONS: Male and female participants had different inflammatory biomarker profiles following HIIT. Female participants had higher levels of IL-6 immediately post-exercise and higher levels of the anti-inflammatory protein IL-10 during recovery. Additional studies examining the roles of diet, age, fitness level, and various clinical conditions on HIIT inflammatory responses are warranted. Supported by: Ellison Institute Collaboration Fund