Is there anything, anything at all, that is not genetic? It doesn't seem so. Researchers at McMaster University have identified a gene whose absence appears to make naturally energetic animals unnaturally lethargic. Medical News Today reports that the researchers made their unexpected finding while working with healthy, specially-bred mice, some of which had two genes in muscle essential for exercise removed. The genes control the protein AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), an enzyme that is switched on when you exercise. "While the normal mice could run for miles, those without the genes could only run the same distance as down the hall and back," said Gregory Steinberg, associate professor of medicine in the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine and Canada Research Chair in Metabolism and Obesity. "The mice looked identical to their brothers or sisters but within seconds we knew which ones had the genes and which one didn't."
The researchers found the mice without the muscle AMPK genes had lower levels of mitochondria and an impaired ability for their muscles to take up glucose while they exercise.
Health, fitness and lifestyle tips for people over 50 who still like to play hard
Sunday, June 1, 2025