In a world of rapidly advancing genomics, it seems there is a new gene discovered every day. With these discoveries, science is able to pinpoint future disease as well as future health and apply preventative or advancement measures. It all comes down to the ability of turning on and turning off the intricate switches that make these genes function. As this “switch” manipulation is still in its infancy stage, it seems to be moving into more robust science showing highly beneficial results.
Recently the “muscle strength” gene has been discovered. This gene offers some good data on improving musculoskeletal health when it comes to muscle atrophy due to old age as well as a new approach to sports medicine science. This is the future of medicine and genomics of the muscles of the body shows one step of many that are catapulting human health to levels beyond the imagination.
All in the Physical
It is no surprise that physical activity is good for you but knowing exactly how good for you may raise an eyebrow or two. The list is long but these are some of the more impressive attributes of physical activity:
All of this, and much more, may be affected by this newly discovered gene. By turning this gene on or off through specific medication or physical activity purposed applications could improve or calm such attributes.
The C18ORF25 Gene
Science cannot just label it the muscle gene so they name it according to several genomic identifying factors that has resulted in this gene being called the C18ORF25 gene. Researchers from the University of Melbourne found how various exercise routines would change the molecules inside our muscles. This lead them in the discovery of the C18ORF25 gene and how it promotes muscle strength. In fact, it was found that this gene can promote stronger muscles without necessarily becoming bigger in size.
It was also found that animals without C18ORF25 present limited and poor muscle performance as well as weaker muscles all around. By promoting optimal muscle functioning through the manipulation of this gene means the best future health in the long run.
The study by the University of Melbourne researchers was published in the journal Cell Metabolism and described here
“To identify divergent and common signaling networks during and after different exercise modalities, we performed a phosphoproteomic analysis of human skeletal muscle from a cross-over intervention of endurance, sprint, and resistance exercise… Expression of C18ORF25 S66/67D phospho-mimetic reversed the decreased muscle force production. This work defines the divergent and canonical exercise phosphoproteome across different modalities and identifies C18ORF25 as a regulator of exercise signaling and muscle function.”
This discovery would determine the muscle strength and how it can possibly be manipulated through medical means to help people compromised by conditions such as muscle atrophy.
According to Project lead Dr. Benjamin Parker,
“We know exercise can prevent and treat chronic diseases including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and many cancers. Now, we hope that by better understanding how different types of exercise elicits these health promoting effects at the molecular level, the field can work towards making new and improved treatment options available.”
The Future of Muscle Strength
When a person is afflicted with any kind of muscle compromise the muscle can significantly weaken. Take someone who is paralyzed. These patients need daily muscle manipulation so atrophy does not set in and create a host of problems such as:
· Nerve disorders
· Numbness
· Tingling
· Balance issues
· Double vision
· Cardiovascular problems
· Circulatory compromise
Dr. Parker continued,
“Identifying this gene may impact how we manage healthy aging, diseases of muscle atrophy, sports science and even livestock and meat production. This is because promoting optimal muscle function is one of the best predictors of overall health,”
A portion of the research was investigating how protein and genes react before, during, and after exercise that included sprinting, endurance, and resistance.
As science uncovers these specific genes more applications can be used for treatments and enhancements of human health. The C18ORF25 gene offers a breakthrough that can give hope to those currently suffering with musculoskeletal issues as well as healthy subjects, such as athletes, who could improve performance as well as recovery.
Sources:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1550413122003023?via%3Dihub
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35882232/
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