Author: Sean Wells
The genes a person is born with are not as fixed as many people believe, and in some cases an alteration in gene expression can be seen within minutes. This is the case when it comes to exercise, according to recent research.
This simple study involved 14 men and women, all of whom were classified as sedentary individuals. Using muscle biopsy, activity within several muscle-related genes was measured both before and after a single 20-minute exercise session.
While exercise is already known to produce changes in an individuals metabolism–especially in regard to increasing burning of both sugar and fat–this study discovered that the first change actually occurs at the genetic level with a rearrangement of methyl groups. These groups are comparable to locks, while the keys come in the form of enzymes known as transcription factors. When the locks are removed, the keys can enter and activate positive adaptive responses.
In the case of this study, what was demonstrated post-exercise was that the DNA within the muscle cells had already reactivated dormant genes that are involved in boosting the muscles work capacity. This sort of change, occurring after just one bout of exercise in previously sedentary individuals, is an impressive demonstration of the potential power being researched in the emerging field of epigenetics.
Contributing author Juleen Zierath may have summarized it best, “Exercise is medicine, and it seems the means to alter our epigenomes for better health may be only a jog away.”
While exercise is already known to produce changes in an individuals metabolism–especially in regard to increasing burning of both sugar and fat–this study discovered that the first change actually occurs at the genetic level with a rearrangement of methyl groups. These groups are comparable to locks, while the keys come in the form of enzymes known as transcription factors. When the locks are removed, the keys can enter and activate positive adaptive responses.
In the case of this study, what was demonstrated post-exercise was that the DNA within the muscle cells had already reactivated dormant genes that are involved in boosting the muscles work capacity. This sort of change, occurring after just one bout of exercise in previously sedentary individuals, is an impressive demonstration of the potential power being researched in the emerging field of epigenetics.
Contributing author Juleen Zierath may have summarized it best, “Exercise is medicine, and it seems the means to alter our epigenomes for better health may be only a jog away.”
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