Effect of gardening physical activity on neuroplasticity and cognitive function

 Useless, way too general to be of any use whatsoever for those survivors that want to actually create neuroplasticity on demand! You have to get specific! What EXACTLY creates BDNF,VEGF, and PDGF?

Effect of gardening physical activity on neuroplasticity and cognitive function

Antonio G. Lentoor ^1,2*

Explor Neuroprot Ther. 2024;4:251–272 DOI: https://doi.org/10.37349/ent.2024.00081

Received: December 17, 2023 Accepted: May 07, 2024 Published: June 05, 2024

Academic Editor: Manuel Zeitelhofer, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden

This article belongs to the special issue Empower Yourself - Physical Activity as Prevention and Rehabilitation of Neurological and Psychiatric Diseases

Abstract

Background:

The beneficial effects of gardening as a form of physical activity have garnered growing interest in recent years. This research aimed to evaluate the effect of gardening as a physical activity on promoting neuroplasticity and cognitive functioning in people.

Methods:

A systematic review was conducted on published articles between January 2010 to December 2022. The systematic search identified 3,470 records based on the PRISMA recommendations, 23 studies were eligible for inclusion in the review.

Results:

The study revealed the potential benefit of gardening physical activity on brain health. The evidence suggests that engaging in gardening physical activity not only boosts immunity and lowers inflammation but can also increase levels of growth neurotrophic factors like brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), which are essential for promoting neuroplasticity and improving cognitive function. These results should be interpreted cautiously given the small number of included studies and few randomized controlled trials.

Discussion:

The study results of gardening physical activity are promising. However, to adequately comprehend the underlying mechanism of the physical activity of gardening on brain health, more well-designed research is still necessary.

Keywords

Neurorehabilitation, neuroplasticity, growth neurotrophic factor, cognition

Introduction

One of the most difficult global health and social issues today is the prevention of cognitive decline or the restoration of cognitive function [1, 2]. Many previously incurable disorders are now treated as chronic illnesses thanks to access to cutting-edge treatment. Because of this, there is a substantial risk for neurocognitive problems, Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and AD-related dementia (ADRD). According to research, low-middle-income countries are particularly at risk and are expected to have the biggest rises in dementia connected to AD and other forms of dementia [3]. Of particular interest, there is a growing concern that cancer treatments like chemotherapy may accelerate the cognitive aging process of the brain, increasing the risk for future neurodegenerative conditions [4]. Several clinical studies have demonstrated cortical degeneration associated with changes in the brain and cognitive impairment from pre- to post-anthracycline-based chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer [5]. These changes have been attributed to chemo-neurotoxicity which has been shown to play a central role in blood-brain barrier penetrability resulting in vascular and oxidative damage, neuroinflammation, neuronal dysfunction, as well as glial cell damage, while some studies have shown that the presence of epsilon 4 allele of apolipoprotein E (APOE) also to be a genetic risk factor for cognitive dysfunction [6–8].

Previous studies showed the brain’s default mode network which includes precuneus, cingulate, medial frontal, middle temporal, and lateral parietal regions, including the hippocampus is particularly vulnerable to anthracycline-based chemotherapy in breast cancer patients [9]. The default mode network has a significant function in implicit learning, monitoring, and distribution of neural resources to various cognitive processes. In the frontal-striatal and temporal regions of the brain, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies demonstrated diminished white matter and grey matter integrity after chemotherapy treatment [10]. Particularly, in cancer survivors treated with anthracyclines, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels were low with frontal lobe and hippocampal neuronal loss [11]. Studies have consistently shown that these brain changes correspond with cognitive impairments, including memory and learning [12], attention, concentration, information processing speed, and executive function [13] in non-central nervous system cancer patients treated with anthracycline-based chemotherapy. The cognitive impairments can be long-lasting and tend to be one of the most common limitations to quality of life and well-being amongst survivors.

Promoting brain function or preventing the onset of cognitive impairment continues to be one of the most challenging health-related challenges, especially in resource-limited countries, including South Africa. The evidence showed that anthracycline-based chemotherapy is a commonly used regimen in South Africa and worldwide to treat cancer despite the neurotoxicity. In a recent study, we found that cognitive impairment is associated with neuroinflammation in a cohort of patients treated for breast cancer with an anthracycline chemotherapy regimen in South Africa [14]. Yet, access to effective neurorehabilitative treatment for cognitive disorders remains a major clinical challenge [15].

South Africa is a highly unequal society, with the majority of the people not having access to specialized oncology and neuropsychology care [16]. While technology-based cognitive training interventions have demonstrated their potential in neurorehabilitation [17], in a developing country like South Africa structural challenges, including to access computerized cognitive rehabilitative interventions due to technological illiteracy, undereducation, a lack of financial resources for internet data, smartphones, or laptops can potentially be a major barrier [18]. This forces us to think contextually and find local solutions that are consistent with the contextual realities of local people. No simple intervention exists to prevent, preserve, and restore cognitive impairment in diseases, but it is important that we consider interventions that are feasible for the local context, like forms of physical activity.