Myostatin Versus Sarcopenia
Researchers are making progress in developing therapies for sarcopenia based on manipulating myostatin: "A reduction in muscle mass and strength is often observed with aging, and this phenomenon is known as sarcopenia. This age-related atrophy frequently correlates with insufficient levels of muscle regeneration resulting from impairment of satellite cell involvement and myogenesis brought about by the aged environment. Using myostatin-null mice, we recently showed that negative regulators of muscle mass such as myostatin play an active role in the regulation of myogenesis during aging. The present study specifically tests the therapeutic value of a myostatin antagonist in sarcopenia. We report here that a short-term blockade of myostatin, through stage-specific administration of a myostatin antagonist, significantly enhanced muscle regeneration in aged mice after injury and during sarcopenia. ... In addition, the antagonist demonstrated a high degree of efficacy, as only minimal doses during the critical period of regeneration after injury were sufficient to restore the myogenic and inflammatory responses in the aged environment."