Figure 1.
Body weight gain of sedentary Wistar rats 3, 6, 18, 24, and 30 months old and the effects of 12 weeks of treadmill running (Exercise) on this gain in rats 6, 18, and 24 months old. Data are reported as means±SE. *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats; +P<0.05 compared to 3-, 5-, and 6-month-old rats; #P<0.05 compared to 3- and 5-month-old rats (repeated-measures ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 2.
Blood glucose (A), triglycerides (B), total cholesterol (C), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (D) of Wistar rats of different ages. Data are reported as medians and 10–90% interquartile ranges. &P<0.05 compared to all groups (Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's post hoc test).
Figure 3.
A, Ratio of soleus muscle weight (mg) to total body weight (g) of Wistar rats of different ages. B, Correlation between total body weight and soleus muscle weight/total body weight ratio. C, Effects of 12 weeks of treadmill running on soleus muscle weight (mg)/total body weight (g) ratio of aged rats. Data are reported as means±SE. *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats (repeated-measures (A) and two-way ANOVA (B) followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 4.
Assessment of stride length (A), step length (B), stride width (C), and sciatic functional index (D) of Wistar rats of different ages. Data are reported as means±SE. *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats; **P<0.05 compared to 3-, 6-, and 18-month-old rats; &P<0.05 compared to all groups (P<0.05, one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 5.
Assessment of stride length (A), step length (B), stride width (C), and sciatic functional index (D) of Wistar rats of different ages after 12 weeks of treadmill running. Data are reported as means±SE. ##P<0.05 compared to 6- and 18-month-old rats (two-way ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 6.
Responses to balance beam test in terms of total score (A,C) and total time to traverse the beam (B,D) for Wistar rats of different ages (A,B) and after 12 weeks of treadmill running (C,D). Data are reported as medians and 10–90% interquartile ranges (A,B) and means±SE (C,D). #P<0.05 compared to 3- and 6-month-old rats; ***P<0.05 compared to sedentary rats over the same age; *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats; (*)P<0.05 compared to 6-month-old rats; &P<0.05 compared to all groups (A and B, Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's post hoc test and C and D, two-way ANOVA followed Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 7.
Total thiol content (A,D), total antioxidant capacity (TAC) (B,E), and superoxide dismutase (USOD) activity (C,F) in the lumbosacral spinal cord of Wistar rats of different ages (A–C) and after 12 weeks of treadmill running (D–F). Data are reported as mean±SE. *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats; #P<0.05 compared to 3- and 6-month-old rats; ##P<0.05 compared to 6- and 18-month-old rats; **P<0.05 compared to 3-, 6-, and 18-month-old rats; (*)P<0.05 compared to 6-month-old rats of the same experimental group (one-way (A–C) and two-way (D–F) ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 8.
Superoxide anion generation (SAG) (A,D), hydrogen peroxide (B,E), and lipid hydroperoxide (C,F) levels in the lumbosacral spinal cord of Wistar rats of different ages (A–C) and after 12 weeks of treadmill running (D–F). Data are reported as mean±SE. **P<0.05 compared to 3-, 6-, and 18-month-old rats; ##P<0.05 compared to 6- and 18-month-old rats (one-way (A–C) and two-way (D–F) ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 4.
Assessment of stride length (A), step length (B), stride width (C), and sciatic functional index (D) of Wistar rats of different ages. Data are reported as means±SE. *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats; **P<0.05 compared to 3-, 6-, and 18-month-old rats; &P<0.05 compared to all groups (P<0.05, one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 5.
Assessment of stride length (A), step length (B), stride width (C), and sciatic functional index (D) of Wistar rats of different ages after 12 weeks of treadmill running. Data are reported as means±SE. ##P<0.05 compared to 6- and 18-month-old rats (two-way ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 6.
Responses to balance beam test in terms of total score (A,C) and total time to traverse the beam (B,D) for Wistar rats of different ages (A,B) and after 12 weeks of treadmill running (C,D). Data are reported as medians and 10–90% interquartile ranges (A,B) and means±SE (C,D). #P<0.05 compared to 3- and 6-month-old rats; ***P<0.05 compared to sedentary rats over the same age; *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats; (*)P<0.05 compared to 6-month-old rats; &P<0.05 compared to all groups (A and B, Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's post hoc test and C and D, two-way ANOVA followed Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 7.
Total thiol content (A,D), total antioxidant capacity (TAC) (B,E), and superoxide dismutase (USOD) activity (C,F) in the lumbosacral spinal cord of Wistar rats of different ages (A–C) and after 12 weeks of treadmill running (D–F). Data are reported as mean±SE. *P<0.05 compared to 3-month-old rats; #P<0.05 compared to 3- and 6-month-old rats; ##P<0.05 compared to 6- and 18-month-old rats; **P<0.05 compared to 3-, 6-, and 18-month-old rats; (*)P<0.05 compared to 6-month-old rats of the same experimental group (one-way (A–C) and two-way (D–F) ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).
Figure 8.
Superoxide anion generation (SAG) (A,D), hydrogen peroxide (B,E), and lipid hydroperoxide (C,F) levels in the lumbosacral spinal cord of Wistar rats of different ages (A–C) and after 12 weeks of treadmill running (D–F). Data are reported as mean±SE. **P<0.05 compared to 3-, 6-, and 18-month-old rats; ##P<0.05 compared to 6- and 18-month-old rats (one-way (A–C) and two-way (D–F) ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc test).