What would it be like to be stronger for longer? A new study from researchers at Duke explores how regular exercise not only keeps your muscles healthy but also helps them age with grace.
As muscles get older, a gene called DEAF1 [def-one] rises to the occasion. As its levels increase, a growth pathway, called mTORC1 [em-tor-see-one], tumbles into overdrive. The delicate balance between protein production and protein removal falls to the wayside; muscle weakening is hastened. Excess activity in mTORC1 means muscles get confused, building new proteins and forgetting to remove damaged ones. Eventually, there are too many lemons, and muscles become stressed. There is a gradual loss of strength.
In a healthy individual, exercise helps to undo this imbalance by bringing back proteins that “check” DEAF1 levels at the door, lowering them back down to acceptable levels. This acts like a reset button, supporting your muscles’ ability to keep clearing out deadweight and build themselves back.
Age-related muscle loss is a common issue strength training attempts to combat. Researchers hope this study, along with further work, might prompt new ways to prevent or treat muscle health that declines over time. Now that we know DEAF1 is a vital regulator of the muscle regeneration process, researchers believe future work could be even better equipped to find new ways of shielding muscles from some of the harsher impacts of aging.
Importantly, researchers noticed some cases where older muscles did not recover as well, which would explain why certain older adults reap more reward from exercise than others. But evidence still points to benefits outweighing sitting on the couch.