Comparison of Effects of High-Intensity Interval Training and Continuous Training on Memory and Correlation with Antioxidant Enzyme Activity in the Rat Brain

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the effects of sixweek continuous training (CT) and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) protocols on brain superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) activities and their associations with short-, mid-, and longterm memory in albino Wistar rats. Methods: In this study, 18 male albino Wistar rats (5 months old) were randomly assigned to three equal (n = 6) groups of sedentary control (SC), CT, and HIIT. Both CT and HIIT regimens were performed for 6 consecutive days per week for 6 weeks. Results: Both HIIT and CT regimens increased short, mid, and longterm memory, and the alterations were greater following HIIT than CT. In addition, both HIIT and CT regimens significantly increased SOD activity, with a higher elevation following HIIT than CT. Moreover, brain SOD activity positively correlated with short, mid, and longterm memory. However, neither CT nor HIIT had a significant effect on brain GPX and CAT activities. Conclusions:The HIIT regimen is highly potential, as opposed to the CT regimen, to improve memory function through a greater increase in the SOD activity of the brain.