Increases in muscle protein synthesis (MPS) and decreases in muscle protein breakdown (MPB) associated with food-intake are fundamental processes underlying day-to-day skeletal muscle maintenance. Increasing circulatory essential amino acids (EAA) through oral intake/I.V infusions of free-amino acids, or ingestion of dietary proteins, stimulates skeletal muscle anabolism. Yet, crucially, while physical activity enhances anabolic responses to nutrition; inactivity and chronological ageing impair them. It is crucial in the many scenarios of muscle wasting (e.g. cancer, ageing, organ failure, trauma), nutrition/physical activity strategies are sought to mitigate skeletal muscle loss and aid recovery. This is also important in the context of “anabolic resistance” (e.g. in ageing), where the key homeostasis cues regulating muscle i.e. nutrition and exercise, appear dysregulated.
What will I learn?
- Learn about the processes maintaining skeletal muscle maintenance
- Analyse nutrition and physical activity strategies to mitigate skeletal muscle loss and aid recovery
- Understand the metabolic responses to food-intake at different ages