Effects of Endurance Exercise on Basement Membrane in the Soleus Muscle of Aged Rats

The basement membrane (BM)-related factors, including collagen IV, are important for the maintenance and recovery of skeletal muscles. Aging impairs the expression of BM-related factors during recovery after disuse atrophy. Muscle activity facilitates collagen synthesis that constitutes the BM. However, the effect of endurance exercise on the BM of aged muscles is unclear. Thus, to understand the effect of endurance exercise on the BM of the skeletal muscle in aged rats, we prescribed treadmill running in aged rats and compared the differences in the expression of BM-related factors between the aged rats with and without exercise habits. Aged rats were subjected to endurance exercise via treadmill running. Exercise increased the mRNA expression levels of the BM-related factors, the area and intensity of collagen IV-immunoreactivity and the width of lamina densa in the soleus muscle of aged rats. These finding suggests that endurance exercise promotes BM construction in aged rats.