ANI |
Has been updated: December 18, 2021 18:14 IST
Melbourne [Australia], December 18 (ANI): Researchers have discovered enzymes that are key to why exercise improves our health and protects us from the consequences of aging.
This study was published in the “Science Advances Journal”.
Importantly, this discovery opens up the possibility of drugs that protect the health of metabolism, including type 2 diabetes, from the effects of aging and promote the activity of this enzyme.
The proportion of people in the world over the age of 60 will double in the next 30 years, with more than 6 million Australians over the age of 65 by 2031. As the incidence of type 2 diabetes increases with age, this aging population will also increase the incidence of this disease worldwide.
One of the main reasons the prevalence of type 2 diabetes increases with age is the development of insulin resistance or the inability of the body to respond to insulin. This is often due to a decrease in physical activity with age.
However, the exact mechanism by which physical inactivity promoted the development of insulin resistance remains a mystery.
Researchers at Monash University in Australia are now discovering ways in which physical activity can actually increase insulin responsiveness and promote metabolic health. Importantly, the enzymes they discover, which are key to this mechanism, can be drug targets to protect against the consequences of aging such as muscle wasting and diabetes.
A team of scientists at the Institute for Biomedical Discovery (BDI) at Monash University, led by Professor Tony Tiganis, reveals that reduced skeletal muscle reactive oxygen species (ROS) production during aging helps develop insulin resistance. Did. According to Professor Tiganis, skeletal muscle constantly produces ROS, which increases during exercise.
“Exercise-induced ROS promotes allostasis that is essential to the health-promoting effects of exercise,” he said.
The researchers showed how an enzyme called NOX-4 is essential for exercise-induced ROS and the adaptive response that promotes metabolic health.
In mice, researchers show that post-exercise increases in NOX4 in skeletal muscle, which leads to an increase in ROS, eliciting an allostatic response that protects the mice from the development of insulin resistance that occurs with age-related and dietary obesity. I found.
Importantly, scientists have shown that levels of NOX4 in skeletal muscle are directly associated with age-related declines in insulin sensitivity.
“This study showed that in animal models, the abundance of NOX 4 in skeletal muscle decreases with age, which leads to a decrease in insulin sensitivity,” says Professor Tiganis.
“Drug-induced activation of the adaptive mechanism regulated by NOX4 may improve important aspects of aging, such as insulin resistance and the development of type 2 diabetes,” he added. ..
“One of these compounds is naturally found in cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli and cauliflower, but the amount required for anti-aging effects may be higher than many are willing to consume. Maybe, “he concluded. (ANI)
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