Summary
The acute effects of running a 42.2 km marathon race on the concentration and composition of the plasma lipoproteins were studied in 56 men of varying fitness, training experience, age and physical characteristics. There was no change in the mean concentration of total serum cholesterol, but a 10.9% increase (P<0.001) in the mean concentrations of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-TC), representing an 11.1% increase (P<0.001) in the cholesteryl ester (CE) and 9.9% increase (P<0.001) in the unesterified cholesterol (UC) moieties of HDL. The ratio of total serum cholesterol to HDL-TC decreased significantly (P<0.001) during the exercise. Changes in lipoprotein concentrations during the marathon varied considerably between individual subjects, with a small proportion of subjects exhibiting relatively large increases or decreases in HDL-TC, HDL-CE and HDL-UC. Small sub-populations of runners were identified who showed abnormally large decreases in HDL-UC and abnormally small increases in HDL-CE relative to HDL-UC. A correlation (P<0.05) was found between the average weekly mileage of training and the increase in HDL-TC, whilst faster runners (finishing time <3 h; n=13) had a significantly greater (P<0.02) increase in HDL-TC than slower runners (>4 h; n=14). The observed alterations in the lipoproteins are consistent with increased rates of lipolysis of triacylglycerol-rich lipoproteins and of cholesterol esterification during the marathon and suggest that the effect of exercise on the activities of the enzymes that catalyse these processes may vary considerably between different subjects and may be modulated by training and other factors.
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Abbreviations
- VLDL:
-
very low density lipoproteins
- LDL:
-
low density lipoproteins
- HDL:
-
high density lipoproteins
- HDL-TC:
-
high-density lipoprotein-total cholesterol
- HDL-CE:
-
cholesteryl ester
- HDL-UC:
-
unesterified cholesterol
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Skinner, E.R., Black, D. & Maughan, R.J. Variability in the response of different male subjects to the effect of marathon running on the increase in plasma high density lipoprotein. Europ. J. Appl. Physiol. 54, 488–493 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00422957
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00422957