Carlos José Matute Almau
Professor of Anatomy and Embryology at the University of the Basque Country, founding scientific director of the Achúcarro Neuroscience Centre in Bilbao and president of the Spanish Society of Neuroscience (SENC)
This is a high-quality study that offers a novel idea: that the brain not only responds to exercise, but that it is necessary to consolidate the benefits of repeated training. It introduces the concept that exercise history can be 'recorded' in specific brain circuits.
We knew that exercise benefits the brain, but this study goes a step further by showing that certain neurons in the hypothalamus appear to coordinate physical adaptations to training. It reinforces the idea that the benefits of exercise are not only peripheral, but also central.
[Regarding possible limitations] The results are based on animal models and should not be directly extrapolated to humans. Even so, it is very plausible that brain mechanisms facilitate or limit physical improvement, since the brain regulates metabolism, the response to exertion, and adaptation to training.