The anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of bergamot (Citrus bergamia) in professional athletes during endurance training

Marco Alfonso Perrone^{1, 2, *}, Bruno Donatucci², Massimo Pieri³, Chiara Salimei⁴, Stefano Marini⁵, Sergio Bernardini^{2, 3}, Ferdinando Iellamo^{2, 6}

¹Division of Cardiology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy - 2University Sports Centre, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy - ³Division of Clinical Biochemisty and Clinical Molecular Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy - ⁴Division of Neuroscience, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy - ⁵Department of Clinical Sciences and Translational Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy - ⁶Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico IRCCS San Raffaele Pisana, Rome, Italy

Introduction: many studies have shown that endurance sports athletes have a biochemical profile of inflammation and high oxidative stress, due to the high load of training. Recent studies have shown that bergamot, in addition to the already known lipid-lowering properties, also has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. The aim of the study was to determine the effects of bergamot juice on biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress in professional athletes who practice cross-country skiing.

Methods: 10 international-level cross-country skiing male athletes were enrolled in the study and as a control group we enrolled 10 national-level cross-country skiing male athletes. We performed a blood sample during the unloading phase of the athletic training (T0) and we dosed high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL). The international-level athletes took 500 ml/day of bergamot juice, which instead the athletes of the control group did not take. Afterwards, the athletes started the training load period and after 30 days of intense training (T1) we re-evaluated the same blood parameters. The two groups had the same training patterns, but athletes of group I sustained a significantly higher volume of training sessions than the athletes of group II.

Results: In group I there was a significant reduction in hsCRP (p<0.05), while there was no significant increase in oxLDL despite the greater training load. In group II, on the other hand, there was no significant change in hsCPR levels between T0 and T1, while there was a significant increase in oxLDL (p<0.05).

Conclusions: Our data showed that supplementation with bergamot juice in professional cross-country skiing athletes could reduce inflammation and oxidative stress due to the intense training. More studies with a higher number of subjects will be needed to understand better the role of bergamot in this category of athletes.