Eur J Appl Physiol (2009) 106:697–704 DOI 10.1007/s00421-009-1070-1 123 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Exhaustive exercise causes an anti-inXammatory eVect in skeletal muscle and a pro-inXammatory eVect in adipose tissue in rats José C. Rosa Neto · Fábio S. Lira · Lila M. Oyama · Nelo E. Zanchi · Alex S. Yamashita · Miguel L. Batista Jr · Cláudia M. Oller do Nascimento · Marília Seelaender Accepted: 20 April 2009 / Published online: 8 May 2009  Springer-Verlag 2009 Abstract It is well known that exhaustive exercise increases serum and skeletal muscle IL-6 concentrations. However, the eVect of exhaustive exercise on the concen- trations of other cytokines in the muscle and in the adipose tissue is controversial. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the eVect of exhaustive exercise on mRNA and protein expression of IL-10, TNF- and IL-6 in diVerent types of skeletal muscle (EDL, soleus) and in two diVerent depots of white adipose tissue (mesenteric–MEAT and retroperitoneal–RPAT). Rats were killed by decapitation immediately (E0 group, n = 6), 2 (E2 group, n = 6) and 6 (E6 group, n = 6) hours after the exhaustion protocol, which consisted of running on a treadmill (approximately 70% VO 2max for 50 min and then subsequently at an elevated rate that increased at 1 m/min every minute, until exhaustion). The control group (C group, n = 6) was not subjected to exercise. Cytokine protein expression increased in EDL, soleus, MEAT and RPAT from all exer- cised groups, as detected by ELISA. EDL IL-10 and TNF- expression was higher than that of the soleus. The IL-10/ TNF- ratio was increased in the skeletal muscle, especially in EDL, but it was found to be decreased in the adipose tis- sue. These results show that exhaustive exercise presents a diVerent eVect depending on the tissue which is analysed: in the muscle, it induces an anti-inXammatory eVect, especially in type 2 Wbres, while the pro-inXammatory eVect prevails in adipose tissue, possibly contributing to increased lipolysis to provide energy for the exercising muscle. Keywords Cytokines · InXammation · Adipose tissue · Exercise · Skeletal muscle Introduction Exercise represents a physical stress that challenges homeostasis (Mastorakos and Pavlatou 2005). Therefore, a single bout of exercise is a mild physical stressor that exerts an array of eVects on immune parameters (Sprenger et al. 1992; Schulz et al. 2004). The body reacts to physical activity as it does during an acute, subclinical inXammatory response to a perceived pathological insult (Bury et al. 1996; Camus et al. 1998). Most studies in humans indicate that during and follow- ing prolonged exercise, plasma cytokine concentrations (e.g. IL-6, IL-10, CSF, MIP, TNF) peak at the end of exer- cise (Starkie et al. 2000; Suzuki et al. 2003; Chan et al. 2004), with the exception of IL-1ra, which peaks 1–2 h postexercise (Ostrowski et al. 1999). IL-6 is generally con- sidered to be inXammation-responsive and to induce anti- inXammatory eVects (via its actions in stimulating cortisol, secreting IL-10 and IL-1ra, and inhibiting TNF- produc- tion) rather than pro-inXammatory eVects (Steensberg et al. 2003; Pedersen and Fischer 2007). J. C. Rosa Neto · F. S. Lira · L. M. Oyama · C. M. Oller do Nascimento (&) Department of Physiology of Nutrition, Federal University of São Paulo, Rua Botucatu 862, 2º andar, São Paulo, SP CEP 04023-060, Brazil e-mail: claudia.oller@unifesp.br F. S. Lira · A. S. Yamashita · M. L. Batista Jr · M. Seelaender Molecular Cell Biology Study Group, Department of Cell Biology and Development, Institute of Biomedical Sciences I, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil N. E. Zanchi School of Physical Education and Sports, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil