Effects of exercise training on brown adipose tissue thermogenesis in ovariectomized obese rats.

The effect of exercise training on brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis was studied by measuring cytochrome oxidase activity, as a marker of mitochondrial abundance, mitochondrial guanosine-5'-diphosphate (GDP) binding, as an indicator of thermogenic activity and oxygen consumption in BAT in ovariectomized (OVX) obese rats and sham-operated rats. Six-week exercise training significantly suppressed body weight gain in OVX rats to the level of sedentary control rats, although food intake in exercise trained OVX rats increased more than in the sedentary OVX rats. Exercise training increased cytochrome oxidase activity, mitochondrial GDP binding and oxygen consumption in BAT in OVX rats, which were reduced in a sedentary condition, as well as in the control rats. These results suggest that exercise training potentiates BAT thermogenesis, which may contribute to the reduction of body weight in OVX obese rats.