| The purpose of the current study was to determine if the following variables change during and following incremental short-term maximal aerobic exercise in young healthy women (1) oxygenation of the left frontal lobe of the brain changes (2) multiple salivary and plasma factors, (3) cognitive function.;Subjects. Apparently healthy 18-30 females, 21.8 +/- 2.7 years old, average VO2max of 51.3 +/- 6.8 ml/kg/min.;Methods. Subjects completed two visits which were counterbalanced: (1) exercise, with a discontinuous short-term maximal treadmill exercise protocol and cognitive assessment pre, during breaks in, and post exercise and, (2) non-exercise, with cognitive assessment timed to match testing in the exercising visit. Near infrared spectroscopy was used to measure left frontal lobe. Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics (ANAM) a computerized, program was used to assess cognitive function.;Results. During the exercise condition oxygenation ranged from 3-6% higher after exercise, compared to pre-exercise and post recovery assessments. In the Exercising versus Non-exercising condition, cerebral oxygenation was higher immediately after exercise, ranging from 3-7.5% higher, it varied based on cognitive function.;alpha-amylase was higher after exercise and recovery than baseline in both conditions (ranging from 47% to 290%).;Two cognitive variables, procedural reaction time and working memory, were assessed before, during breaks, and after exercise and recovery in both conditions. Multiple changes were detected.;Conclusions. Our study suggests that short-term maximal aerobic exercise coupled with cognitive tasks is: (1) significant enough to increase cerebral oxygenation and that exercise intensity is a significant factor in the observed changes in oxygenation, (2) increases alpha-amylase levels, 3 that some cognitive tasks are resilient to changes across time, or exercise intervention and level of intensity, therefore interpretation of results must be task specific. |
