“Exercise is known to have many health benefits but the mechanism has been clear. Autophagy is also known to have some health benefits, and benefits are closely connected with the effects of exercise. We hypothesize that some of the health benefits of exercise can be explained through autophagy, “said senior author Dr. Beth Levine, Professor of internal medicine and microbiology are leading the Research Center at UT Southwestern Autophagy.
Dr. Levine, an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) at the Medical Center, decided to focus on one specific health effects of exercise training capability to prevent blood sugar abnormality in the face of high-fat diet. Mouse study provides the first evidence that exercise stimulates autophagy.
The researchers found that mice that are genetically incapable of improving autophagy in response to short-term exercise decreased resilience and fail to experience the benefits of exercise on blood sugar to a normal metabolism.