Saturday, April 19, 2014

Myostatin Inhibitors Could be the Next Big Doping Agent

Belgian Blue bulls look like they are made of muscle because they have a mutation in the gene that codes for the protein myostatin. In humans, as in other types of cattle, myostatin normally limits the number of muscle fibers that form before birth and then limits the growth of those fibers later on.
Courtesy of Se-Jin Lee and Alexandra McPherron/PNAS, copyright National Public Radio
The animal in this picture is a Belgian Blue bull.  Due to a genetic mutation which reduces the activity of a protein called myostatin, these bulls have unusual muscular hypertrophy. Myostatin is a naturally occurring substance that limits the number and growth of muscle fibers in the body. If you inhibit myostatin, you build more muscle. Thomas directed me to a very fascinating NPR story on the potential of myostatin blockers as performance enhancing drugs. You can read the article or listen to audio here: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/08/12/210487410/new-muscle-drugs-could-be-the-next-big-thing-in-sports-doping?utm_source=npr_email_a_friend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20140418&utm_campaign=storyshare&utm_term=
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