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16/100

⚠ Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 16 out of 100. Clinical trials

Topic: Brain imaging, connectivity and assessment

Background Coronary artery disease (CAD) increases the risk of cognitive impairment, dementia, and brain structural alterations. This heart-brain connection suggests that exercise-induced cardiovascular responses may influence brain regions vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common cause of dementia. This study aimed to examine the effects of 12-weeks of either high-intensity interval training (HIIT) plus resistance training (RT) or HIIT alone on AD brain signatures in individuals with CAD, to explore moderating factors, and to assess associations between changes in AD brain signatures and cognition and physical fitness. Methods This secondary analysis of a single-site, three-arm, single-blinded randomized controlled trial included 105 individuals with CAD (50-75 years; 21% female) randomly allocated to HIIT+RT, HIIT, or usual care (UC) groups. T1- and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging were acquired before and after the 12-week intervention. Primary outcomes were thickness/volume and gray matter mean diffusivity (GMMD) signatures, derived from seven cortical regions and the hippocampus. Moderators included age, sex, education, and baseline AD brain signatures. Results For the thickness/volume signature, no between-group differences in changes were observed between HIIT+RT and UC (+0.13 standardized mean difference [SMD]; 95% CI, -0.07 to 0.33) or between HIIT and UC (-0.1 SMD; 95% CI, -0.3 to 0.1); however, a small but significant between-group difference in change was found between HIIT+RT and HIIT, in favor of HIIT+RT (+0.23 SMD; 95% CI, 0.03 to 0.42). For the GMMD signature, no significant between-group differences in changes were found between HIIT+RT and UC (+0.08 SMD; 95% CI, -0.18 to 0.34), HIIT and UC (+0.1 SMD; 95% CI, -0.16 to 0.36), or HIIT+RT and HIIT (-0.02 SMD; 95% CI, -0.28 to 0.23). No moderation effects were identified, and no associations were observed between changes in AD brain signatures and cognition or physical fitness. Conclusion A 12-week HIIT+RT intervention was more effective than HIIT alone in increasing the thickness/volume signature in individuals with CAD, yet no differences were observed compared to UC and the interventions did not affect the GMMD signature. These findings suggest that the intra-session inclusion of RT with HIIT may enhance AD-related brain macrostructure in individuals with CAD more than just HIIT training.

Key findings

This heart-brain connection suggests that exercise-induced cardiovascular responses may influence brain regions vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common cause of dementia.
Results For the thickness/volume signature, no between-group differences in changes were observed between HIIT+RT and UC (+0.13 standardized mean difference [SMD]; 95% CI, -0.07 to 0.33) or between HIIT and UC (-0.1 SMD; 95% CI, -0.3 to 0.1); however, a small but significant between-group difference in change was found between HIIT+RT and HIIT, in favor of HIIT+RT (+0.23 SMD; 95% CI, 0.03 to 0.42).
For the GMMD signature, no significant between-group differences in changes were found between HIIT+RT and UC (+0.08 SMD; 95% CI, -0.18 to 0.34), HIIT and UC (+0.1 SMD; 95% CI, -0.16 to 0.36), or HIIT+RT and HIIT (-0.02 SMD; 95% CI, -0.28 to 0.23).
Conclusion A 12-week HIIT+RT intervention was more effective than HIIT alone in increasing the thickness/volume signature in individuals with CAD, yet no differences were observed compared to UC and the interventions did not affect the GMMD signature.
These findings suggest that the intra-session inclusion of RT with HIIT may enhance AD-related brain macrostructure in individuals with CAD more than just HIIT training.

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Study details

Study designrandomized controlled trial
Participants105
Evidence strengthHigh

How this study scored 16/100

Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. It scored 55 on the same rubric, but non-peer-reviewed sources are capped at 16, so it shows as 16. Scored zero for effect reported because the record does not state it. We have no data on times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 34 of the 62 points we could judge it on, which is 55 out of 100.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	2 / 10	Tier 4 — not a peer-reviewed journal (medRxiv)
Journal's citation record	0 / 4	Not a journal article, so the journal's record does not count
Study design	11 / 12	A randomised controlled trial
Strength of evidence	5 / 5	Rated “high” in our summary
Peer-review validation	4 / 10	Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. Hosted on a preprint server.
How recent	5 / 5	2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	2 / 4	105 participants
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	3 / 3	Studied in people (participant count stated)
Randomised / blinded	1 / 2	Randomised (as stated in the record)
Times cited	— / 7	No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score
Citations per year	— / 5	No citation count or no year — left out of this score
Impact for its field and year	— / 6	No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score
Cited by studies here	— / 6	Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score
Still being cited	— / 4	No yearly citation counts — left out of this score
Senior author's track record	— / 4	Senior author's record not available — left out of this score
Institution's track record	— / 3	No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score
Multi-centre collaboration	— / 3	Institutions not listed — left out of this score
Indexed in PubMed	1 / 2	Not in PubMed, but has a DOI
Free to read	0 / 2	Behind a paywall — scores zero
Points	34 / 62	Scored on 12 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 34 of the 62 points we could judge it on is 55 out of 100.
Total	55 / 100	Capped to 16 because this is not a peer-reviewed article.

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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris

Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.

APA 7th

Sanchez-Martinez, J., Solis-Urra, P., Toval, A., Coca-Pulido, A., Rodríguez Palacios, M. T., Sánchez-Aranda, L., et al. (2026). Effects of high-intensity interval training with or without resistance training on Alzheimer’s disease brain signatures in individuals with coronary artery disease: the Heart-Brain randomized controlled trial. medRxiv. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.07.02.26357035

Vancouver

Sanchez-Martinez J, Solis-Urra P, Toval A, Coca-Pulido A, Rodríguez Palacios MT, Sánchez-Aranda L, et al. Effects of high-intensity interval training with or without resistance training on Alzheimer’s disease brain signatures in individuals with coronary artery disease: the Heart-Brain randomized controlled trial. medRxiv. 2026. doi:10.64898/2026.07.02.26357035.

BibTeX

@article{sanchezmartinez2026-525e1fdd,
  author  = {Sanchez-Martinez, J. and Solis-Urra, P. and Toval, A. and Coca-Pulido, A. and Rodríguez Palacios, M. T. and Sánchez-Aranda, L. and Bakker, E. A. and Martín-Fuentes, I. and others},
  title   = {{Effects of high-intensity interval training with or without resistance training on Alzheimer’s disease brain signatures in individuals with coronary artery disease: the Heart-Brain randomized controlled trial}},
  journal = {medRxiv},
  year    = {2026},
  doi     = {10.64898/2026.07.02.26357035},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.07.02.26357035}
}

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