{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,3]],"date-time":"2026-08-03T05:46:04Z","timestamp":1785735964242,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,3]],"date-time":"2026-08-03T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1785715200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background and objective<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Physical exercise triggers coordinated neurobiological responses. This study compared the acute effects of high-intensity intermittent (basketball) versus moderate-intensity continuous (tennis) exercise on serum irisin, BDNF, and NRF2 levels, and on working memory and inhibitory control in sedentary young adults (18\u201325\u202fyears).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Sixty sedentary male participants (\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f20 per group) completed basketball, tennis, or passive control protocols. Serum biomarkers were quantified by ELISA pre- and post-exercise. Cognitive performance was assessed using the Digit Span and Stroop Color-Word Tests. Non-parametric analyses (Wilcoxon, Kruskal\u2013Wallis, Dunn\u2013Bonferroni) were applied, with a linear mixed-effects model used as a supplementary robustness check for serum irisin.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Both exercise groups showed significant within-group increases in all biomarkers and cognitive measures (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.001), with no changes in controls (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;gt;\u202f0.05). Basketball produced greater irisin (+41.9% vs. +30.5%), BDNF (+63.9% vs. +29.9%), NRF2 (+73.5% vs. +47.1%), and cognitive improvements than tennis (all\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.01).\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Acute high-intensity intermittent exercise elicits significantly stronger neurotrophic, antioxidant, and cognitive responses than moderate-intensity continuous exercise in sedentary young adults, consistent with intensity-dependent activation of the muscle-brain axis; sport-specific motor and cognitive-load differences may also contribute and cannot be fully disentangled from metabolic intensity in the present design.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2026.1911856","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,3]],"date-time":"2026-08-03T05:30:58Z","timestamp":1785735058000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Acute effects of sports with different metabolic loads on serum irisin, BDNF, and NRF2 levels and cognitive performance in sedentary young adults: a comparative analysis of basketball and tennis protocols"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Cemre Can","family":"Akkaya","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Sport Sciences, Department of Coaching Education, Istanbul Yeni Yuzyil University","place":["Istanbul, T\u00fcrkiye"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Canan","family":"Ceylan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Sport Sciences, Department of Physical Education and Sports Teaching, Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim 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