Levels of cardiorespiratory fitness in men exerts strong impact on lymphocyte function after mitogen stimulation.

Relationship between lymphocyte function and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is well documented at rest; however, upon mitogen stimulation the proliferation and cytokine production alters but are incipient the lymphocyte responses front mitogens according to the CRF. So, the purpose of the present study was to analyze the lymphocyte function according to the physical fitness status of healthy young men. The study is divided in two experiments being the first analyzing the lymphocyte phenotypes profile and the inflammatory responses, according to CRF, in lymphocyte cell culture treated for 48 hours with Concanavalin A (ConA). And the second experiment analyzed the proliferation, reactive oxygen species production, viability, and mitochondrial polarization state in lymphocytes treated with ConA in different concentrations, considering the CRF levels. The results showed a difference in the percentage of total lymphocytes expression between groups (p=0.011) observing a lower lymphocytes T expression in the group with High when compared with Moderate group. When treated with ConA, the lymphocytes of the Low group released higher TNF-α concentration (p=0.032), reflecting an elevated TNF-α/IL-10 ratio (p=0.055), parallel with lower IL-6 production (p=0.027), mainly when compared with Moderate group. In addition, there is a positive relationship between and IL-6 production (r=0.507; p=0.016) whereas the percentage of total lymphocytes (LyT%) shows a negative association tendency with (r=-0.497; p=0.060). Also, individuals with lower showed reduced absolute and relative ROS production, lower cell proliferation, and higher mitochondrial membrane depolarization. In conclusion, cardiorespiratory fitness degree exerts a strong impact on lymphocyte function after mitogen stimulation.