Journal of Exercise Physiology in Special Populations

Studying the effect of resistance training on JAK2/STAT3/SOCS3 gene expression in obese male Wistar rats

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 BOJNOURD

2 Bojnourd

3 Birjand

Abstract

The JAK2/STAT3/SOCS3 pathway plays a key role in inflammation, immunity, metabolism, and cancer. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of resistance training on the JAK2/STAT3/SOCS3 pathway in obese male Wistar rats.

Thirty healthy male Wistar rats with an average age of eight weeks and an average weight of 187.5 ± 9.37 grams were randomly selected and 20 rats were placed on a high-fat diet for 8 weeks to induce obesity. The rats were divided into three groups: healthy control, obese control, and resistance training. After confirming obesity, resistance training was applied to the training group for 8 weeks, 5 sessions per week. Real Time-PCR was used to measure the expression of JAK2, STAT3, and SOCS3 genes. One-way analysis of variance and Tukey's post hoc test were used to determine the difference between groups at a significance level of p<0.05.

The expression of JAK2 and STAT3 genes in the resistance training group was significantly reduced compared to the obese control group (p=0.001). The expression of these genes in the obese control group was also significantly increased compared to the healthy control group (p=0.001). The expression of SOCS3 gene was also significantly increased in the resistance training group compared to the obese control group (p=0.001). The expression of this gene in the obese control group was significantly reduced compared to the healthy control group (p=0.001).

Resistance training by improving the JAK2/STAT3/SOCS3 signaling pathway may be considered an effective strategy for overweight and obesity.

Keywords

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Journal of Exercise Physiology in Special Populations
Volume 2, Issue 3
September 2026
Pages 1-18