Background and Aim: The liver is exposed to large amounts of toll-like receptor ligands due to increased bacterial growth and increased intestinal permeability in patients with fatty liver disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of high-intensity interval training and Lactobacillus Rhamnosus probiotic consumption on TLR4 and MYD88 expression in gut tissue in an animal model of non-alcoholic fatty liver.
Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 40 rats (weighing 200-250 gr) were selected and randomly divided into 5 groups including healthy control, fatty liver, fatty liver + HIIT, fatty liver + probiotic, and fatty liver + HIIT + probiotic groups. In order to induce fatty liver, oral tetracycline 140 mg/kg/day in 2 ml of water in form of a solution was given to the rats by gavage for 7 days. HIIT exercise program performed on treadmill five sessions per week for 5 weeks. Data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc tests.
P <0.05 was considered significant.
Results: The results showed that TLR4 gene expression was significantly lower in HIIT, probiotic, and also HIIT + probiotic groups than in the fatty liver group (p=0.001). Also, the expression of the MYD88 gene in intestinal tissue was significantly lower in HIIT, probiotic and HIIT+probiotic groups than that in the fatty liver group (p=0.001).
Conclusion: Expression of TLR4 and MYD88 genes in adipose tissue induced by fatty liver, can be reduced by HIIT and probiotic intake. Therefore, these interventions can be considered as a non-pharmacological strategy in the treatment of fatty liver.