A new scientific study has identified the DEAF1 gene as a factor that can contribute to muscle weakness over age.
Researchers also found that physical activity can lower this gene levels and help maintain the balance of proteins in muscles.
Research conducted by scientists at Duke Medical School – NUS in Singapore, in co-operation with Singapore General Hospital and the University of Cardiff.
The results were published in the scientific magazine Processings of the National Academy of Sciences ( PNAS), as experiments were carried out in old fruit flies and mice.
How does the gene affect the muscles?
Healthy muscles must produce new proteins and remove old or damaged ones. With age, such balance can be ruined. According to researchers, increasing DEAF1 activity is linked to overactivation of m cell road TORC1, which regulates protein production.
As a result, muscle cells can produce more protein as they reduce the damage. This gathering can harm cell function and contribute to muscle weakness.
During experiments, increased DEAF1 levels in animals were accompanied by faster muscle weakness. As it declined, it helped improve the balance of proteins and restore muscle force.
Exercise can help slow the process
Researchers found that physical activity activates proteins that reduce DEAF1 levels, helping muscles remove damaged proteins and maintain their function.
However, the benefits may vary from person to person. When DEAF1 levels are very high or the activity of FOXO proteins is too low, exercise may not be enough to fully restore muscle function.
Researchers are also considering the possibility that future interventions will help those who cannot be trained, including some patients after major surgery or during cancer treatment.
For now, this remains a research option. It still needs to be confirmed whether the same mechanism works on people and if intervention at DEAF1 levels is safe.
Hence, the results do not mean that scientists have discovered a ready treatment against muscle aging. /Telegraphy/
