Short term exercise training enhances cell-mediated responses to HSV-1 vaccine in mice

Exercise (with appropriate intensity and duration) is a natural modulator of immune responses and may be useful to increase the vaccine response towards antigen. According to the fact that rural area responding butter than urbon area to vaccine protocol, this study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that short term exercise training as an adjuvant for antigen such as herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) in animal models. Mice with/without access to short term exercise training were immunized intramuscularly with inactivated KOS strain of HSV-1. Immune responses was investigated with regards of both cell-mediated and humoral immunity. In this study by using short term exercise training as an adjuvant enhanced Th1 response while it did not show significant effect on Th2 responses towards HSV-1 immunization. Also, immunoglobulin G (IgG) 2a/IgG1-ratios increased in vaccine with short term exercise training group. These results suggested that coupling short term moderate exercise training as a mild adjuvant with vaccination may enhance cell-mediated immune responses especially Th1 responses. •Using short term exercise training as an adjuvant enhanced lymphocytes proliferation.•Using short term exercise training as an adjuvant enhanced interferon-γ cytokine release.•Using short term exercise training as an adjuvant enhanced IgG2a/IgG1-ratio in HSV-1 immunization.•These results suggested that coupling short term moderate exercise training with vaccines may enhance cell-mediated immune responses.