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. 2023 Aug 12;12(16):5265.
doi: 10.3390/jcm12165265.

Whole-Body Cryotherapy Alters Circulating MicroRNA Profile in Postmenopausal Women

Magdalena Wiecek  1 , Justyna Kusmierczyk  1 , Jadwiga Szymura  2 , Grzegorz Kreiner  3 , Zbigniew Szygula  4
Affiliations

Whole-Body Cryotherapy Alters Circulating MicroRNA Profile in Postmenopausal Women

Magdalena Wiecek et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

The incidence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) increases with age, especially in women. The role of microRNAs (miRs) in the regulation of metabolism is postulated. The aim of the study is to identify miRs that may be markers of MetS and to assess changes in miRs expression as a result of 10 and 20 whole-body cryotherapy treatments (WBC; 3 min, -120 °C) in postmenopausal women with MetS (M-60, BMI 30.56 ± 5.38 kg/m2), compared to healthy postmenopausal (H-60, BMI 25.57 ± 2.46 kg/m2) and healthy young women (H-20, BMI 22.90 ± 3.19 kg/m2). In a fasting state, before 1 WBC and after 10 WBCs, as well as 20 WBCs, the expression of miR-15a-5p, miR-21-5p, miR-23a-3p, miR-146a-5p, miR-197-3p, miR-223-3p, fasting blood glucose (FBG) and blood lipid profile were determined. miR-15a-5p and miR-21-5p were down-regulated in M-60, while miR-23a-3p and miR-197-3p were up-regulated, and miR-223-3p down-regulated in M-60 and H-60, compared to H-20. Significant positive correlations between up-regulated (mostly for miR-23-3p and miR-197-3p) and significant negative correlations between down-regulated (mostly for miR-15a-5p) miRs and markers of body composition as well as metabolic disorders were observed. After 20 WBCs, miR-15a-5p expression was up-regulated in all groups. In H-60, down-regulation of miR-197-3p expression occurred after 10 WBCs and 20 WBCs. Following 10 WBCs, FBG decreased in all groups, which intensified in M-60 post-20 WBCs. In our research, it has been shown that miR-23a-3p and miR-197-3p are accurate markers of MetS and MetS risk factors, while miR-15a-5p and miR-23a-3p are precise markers of body composition disorders. WBC is an effective treatment for up-regulating miR-15a-5p and lowering glucose levels in young and postmenopausal women and down-regulating miR-197-3p expression in postmenopausal women. It may be an adjunctive effective treatment method in MetS and hyperglycemia.

Keywords: metabolic syndrome; metabolism regulation; microRNAs expression; postmenopausal women; visceral obesity; whole-body cryotherapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Scheme of the study.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Changes in miR expression as a result of whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) treatments, the expression of which was previously down-regulated (p < 0.05) in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome (M-60) and/or in healthy post-menopausal women (H-60) compared to young women (H-20): (a) miR-15a-5p; (b) miR-21-5p; (c) miR-223-3pMarkers next to the bars: statistically significant differences (p < 0.05): (a) H-60 or M-60 compared to H-20; (b) M-60 compared to H-60.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Changes in miR expression as a result of whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) treatments, the expression of which was previously down-regulated (p < 0.05) in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome (M-60) and/or in healthy post-menopausal women (H-60) compared to young women (H-20): (a) miR-15a-5p; (b) miR-21-5p; (c) miR-223-3pMarkers next to the bars: statistically significant differences (p < 0.05): (a) H-60 or M-60 compared to H-20; (b) M-60 compared to H-60.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Changes in miR expression as a result of whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) treatments, the expression of which was previously up-regulated (p < 0.05) in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome (M-60) and/or in healthy postmenopausal women (H-60) compared to young women (H-20): (a) miR-23a-3p; (b) miR-146a-5p; (c) miR-197-3p. Markers next to the bars: statistically significant differences (p < 0.05): (a) H-60 or M-60 compared to H-20; (b) M-60 compared to H-60.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Changes in miR expression as a result of whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) treatments, the expression of which was previously up-regulated (p < 0.05) in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome (M-60) and/or in healthy postmenopausal women (H-60) compared to young women (H-20): (a) miR-23a-3p; (b) miR-146a-5p; (c) miR-197-3p. Markers next to the bars: statistically significant differences (p < 0.05): (a) H-60 or M-60 compared to H-20; (b) M-60 compared to H-60.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Changes in fasting blood glucose (FBG) as an effect of whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) treatments in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome (M-60) and in healthy postmenopausal women (H-60), compared to healthy young women (H-20). Markers next to the bars: statistically significant differences (p < 0.05): (a) H-60 or M-60 compared to H-20; (b) M-60 compared to H-60.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Correlation diagram between miRNA expression and somatic as well as metabolic markers in volunteers. Metabolic syndrome criteria NCEP—ATP III (gray)—WC: waist circumference; TG: triglycerides; FBG: fasting blood glucose; DBP: diastolic blood pressure; body composition markers (blue)—BM: body mass; BF: body fat; WHtR: waist-to-height ratio; BMI: body mass index; other metabolic markers (beige)—HbA1c: glycated hemoglobin; T-CHOL: total cholesterol; LDL-C: low-density lipoproteins; AIP: atherogenic index of plasma; CRI-I: Castelli I index; CRI-II: Castelli II index; TyG: triglyceride glucose index; LAP: lipid accumulation product; VAI: visceral adiposity index; down-regulated miRs (green): negative correlations; up-regulated miRs (red): positive correlations; line thickness: correlation coefficient.
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