Spirulina Supplementation Alleviates Intense Exercise-Induced Damage and Modulates Gut Microbiota in Mice

Chunxia Wang; Huijuan Liu; Shuyu Zhang; Chengyi Ren; Jiaming Xu; Juanjuan Chen; Haimin Chen; Wei Wu

doi:10.3390/nu17020355

Spirulina Supplementation Alleviates Intense Exercise-Induced Damage and Modulates Gut Microbiota in Mice

Nutrients. 2025 Jan 20;17(2):355. doi: 10.3390/nu17020355.

Authors

Chunxia Wang^{1

2}, Huijuan Liu^{1

2}, Shuyu Zhang^{1

2}, Chengyi Ren^{1

2}, Jiaming Xu^{1

2}, Juanjuan Chen^{1

2}, Haimin Chen^{1

2}, Wei Wu^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China.
² Collaborative Innovation Center for Zhejiang Marine High-Efficiency and Healthy Aquaculture, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China.

PMID: 39861485
DOI: 10.3390/nu17020355

Abstract

Background: Spirulina, which are filamentous cyanobacteria, have gained significant popularity in the food industry, medicine, and aquaculture.

Methods: In this study, our objective was to explore the influence of Spirulina on the gut microbiota and exercise capacity of mice undergoing high-intensity exercise. Twenty-four male BALB/c mice were divided into four groups, with six mice in each group. These groups included the control group (Control, in which the mice received saline gavage and were permitted free movement), the exercise group (Running, in which the mice were gavaged with the same volume of saline and subjected to a structured exercise regimen), and the Spirulina intervention groups (including Spirulina^Low and Spirulina^High). In the Spirulina intervention groups, the mice were orally administered with Spirulina at doses of 100 and 300 mg/kg/day for four weeks while simultaneously participating in the exercise protocol.

Results: The results illustrated that the Running group mice subjected to intense exercise exhibited reduced weight and tension, acute damage to muscle and liver tissues, oxidative stress, and an imbalance in the gut microbiota compared with that of the Control group. However, high-concentration Spirulina supplementation was found to increase the tensile strength of the exercise mice by 1.27 ± 0.19 fold (p < 0.05) and ameliorate muscle and liver damage. In the Spirulina^High group, the levels of certain indicators related to muscle oxidative stress, including reactive oxygen species, total superoxide dismutase, and catalase, were decreased by 39 ± 5.32% (p < 0.01) and increased by 1.11 ± 0.17 fold and 1.19 ± 0.22 fold (p < 0.01) compared to the Running group. Additionally, a correlation analysis reveals that the alterations in gut microbiota induced by Spirulina might be associated with the indicators of tension and oxidative stress.

Conclusions: Collectively, these findings point to the fact that Spirulina can effectively mitigate the acute damage to muscles and the liver induced by intense exercise in mice by enhancing antioxidant capacity and regulating the gut microbiota, thereby providing novel insights into the mechanism underlying the enhancement of exercise function.

Keywords: Spirulina; antioxidant; gut microbiota; high-intensity exercise.

MeSH terms

Animals
Dietary Supplements*
Gastrointestinal Microbiome* / drug effects
Liver / drug effects
Liver / metabolism
Male
Mice
Mice, Inbred BALB C*
Muscle, Skeletal / drug effects
Oxidative Stress* / drug effects
Physical Conditioning, Animal*
Spirulina*

Grants and funding

No. LTGN24C200001;CARS-50;2023Z118/Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant;China Agriculture Research System of MOF and MARA;the Key Program of Science and Technology Innovation in Ningbo