Lactate for Energy and Neurocognition

Improved cardiorespiratory fitness following an aerobic exercise program elicits cognitive benefit in elderly subjects and memory improvement in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The physiological mechanism may be related to exercise-mediated change in circulating factors that permeate the brain. The response to each individual bout of exercise (i.e. the acute exercise response) may differ between subjects and be key to driving brain benefit. In young populations, the acute response to exercise can last hours and affect brain glucose metabolism. However, the field knows little about this acute exercise response in AD. Most exercise intervention trials designed to prevent and slow AD assess biomarkers at two fasting time points: pre- and post-intervention. The acute exercise response in the brain and periphery likely varies between subjects and diagnoses and provide key information regarding mechanisms of benefit. Our primary goals are to characterize the acute exercise response to exercise in the brain (glucose metabolism) and periphery (biomarker response) in aging and AD. We will identify relationships between exercise-related factors (i.e. heart rate, biomarkers) and change in brain metabolism and cognition. Understanding these mechanistic relationships will provide specific targets that can be used in future trials to develop individualized exercise prescriptions and maximize benefit.