Background
vascular cognitive impairment, ischemic strokes, gait disturbances, white matter hyperintensities
VASCULAR COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT, ISCHEMIC STROKES, WHITE MATTER HYPERINTENSITIES
Evidence supports aerobic training (AT) as a strategy to improve cognitive health, with the strongest evidence seen in older adults and for executive functions [It is hypothesized that one possible pathway through which AT benefits cognition is the induction of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) cascade, which supports neuroplasticity and the cellular mechanisms required for learning [Of relevance, a common functional single-nucleotide polymorphism exists within the pro-domain region of the BDNF gene resulting in an amino acid substitution of valine (Val) to methionine (Met) at position 66, termed the Val66Met substitution, and may influence exercise efficacy in a sex-dependent manner. The Met allele alters intracellular trafficking of the precursor form of BDNF, reducing the activity-dependent secretion of the mature form of BDNF [No intervention study of AT has examined the interaction of the BDNFval66met polymorphism and biological sex on cognition. Findings from observational studies are equivocal. Sanders et al. [Subcortical ischemic vascular cognitive impairment (SIVCI) is the most common form of vascular cognitive impairment in which covert ischemic strokes manifest as white matter hyperintensities, resulting in declines in executive functions, memory, language, gait disturbances, and increased falls [Therefore, we analyzed data collected from a single-blind randomized controlled trial (NCT01027858) to assess whether the effect of a 3x/week progressive AT intervention on executive functions and processing speed in participants with SIVIC [