Effects of 6-week specific low-intensity training on selected aerobic capacity parameters and HSPA1A, HSPB1, and LDHb gene expression in high-level rowers.

The aim of this study was to demonstrate the effects of 6-week low-intensity training on changes in indicators of aerobic capacity and on HSPA1A, HSPB1, and LDHb expression in white blood cells in high level rowers. We hypothesized that the type of training would have an impact not only on the adaptation of athletes to the aerobic nature of the exercises, but also on the expression of genes, designated during exercises "until refusal". Nine Polish lightweight male rowers (21.8 ± 3.77 years of age, 74.2 ± 1.7 6 kg, 184.8 ± 4.58 cm) of high level participated in the experiment. To determine the anaerobic threshold (AnT) and peak oxygen uptake (VO2max) at the beginning and end of the 6-week training period, the subjects performed the test "till exhaustion", with increasing load. Directly before and after the test, blood samples were collected from the ulnar vein for isolation of RNA. Consecutively, reverse transcription and real time polymerase chain reaction amplification was performed. A significant influence of applied training on physiological parameters such as VO2max (P = 0.0001), AnT (W/AT) (P = 0.0007), and maximal acid lactate concentration (P = 0.018) as well as on HSPA1A expression (P = 0.0129) in rowers were detected. The 6-week low-intensity aerobic training significantly affected the physiological parameters and HSPA1A expression in the rowers. Therefore, we suggest that the response of leukocytes by activating HSPA1A was dependent on the type of training. The 6-week period proved sufficiently long to of adapting leukocytes in athletes to high intensity exercises.