Ridecamp: Re: [RC] Bioengineered Endurance Athletes?

Jon:
  You said:

By the way the gene for the protein that makes the structure know as
mitochondria, which is where we use oxygen in the muscle cell, is
apparently a maternally linked gene.  Thus, great endurance capacity of
muscle comes from mom........not pops!

>From this statement, do you mean that the gene for selecting for
muscle-fiber type (i.e. slow or fast twitch muscle fiber) is on
mitochondrial DNA, (which is only expressed in the female line) therefore
when making breeding decisions, it's more important to choose a MARE that is
endurance proven than a STALLION that is endurance proven?  Would that mean
that the stallion could be just any conformationally desireable animal of
the breed of choice (say, Arab :-)  as long as the mare was a good endurance
horse, and you would be more likely to get a foal with the right
muscle-fiber phenotype, therefore a more promising prospect?
Debbie Trimble





----- Original Message -----
From: <Jon.Linderman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <tprevatt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>By the way the gene for the protein that makes
the structure know as
mitochondria, which is where we use oxygen in the muscle cell, is
apparently a maternally linked gene.  Thus, great endurance capacity of
muscle comes from mom........not pops!


Cc: "Lynne Glazer" <lglazer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>; <ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>;
<ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Monday, August 19, 2002 8:20 AM
Subject: Re: [RC] Bioengineered Endurance Athletes?


>
> As one of "them" who has done work witrh muscle fiber type changes for
most
> of my career let me say that recent publications of changes in muscle
fiber
> types are really nothing new.  We knew since the 70's that rodent muscle
> could undergo dramatic changes from fast to slow with various
interventions
> that caused the muscle to be chronically recruited.  These interventions
> showed us the envelope to which a muscle can be changed.  A practical
> application of this in the training of mammals: dogs, rats, and humans is
> that prolonged periods of low intensity activity alters the fiber
> characterisitics of the muscle to be more slow twitch.......we have called
> this LSD long slow distance training.
>
> It should be cautioned that slow twitch refers to the contraction speed of
> the muscle, which normally goes hand in hand with the ability to use
oxygen
> to sustain energy use for prolonged periods of time.  However, as we age,
> muscle lose high power faster twitch fibers and actually become slow
twitch
> in nature making us more susceptible to falls etc.  However, in  this case
> the aged slow twitch muscle changes actually results in a decreased
ability
> to use oxygen and we see reduced work capacity in the elderly.  In space
> w/the lack of gravity muscles get smaller (atrophy) and actually become
> faster twitch which causes them to fatigue more rapidly. In otherwords,
> contrary to popular myth we have know for a long time that muscle can
> undergo dramtic changes in many environments.
>
> Carl Lewis can not become frank shorter, and vice versa.  For those 2
young
> to remebver frank shorter won gold and silver in the marathon for the US.
> They have a genetic window that endows them with fiber characterisitcs of
> their muscles.  They can have changes through training, but w/out very
> severe, even painful procedures, it is nearly impossible to take a turkey
> breast (white; fast twitch muscle) and make it into a turkey leg (dark;
> slow twitch muscle).  By the way the dark comes from the rino containing
> proteins that bind oxygen in the muscle: myoglobin and the cytochromes
that
> are involved in the use of oxygen.  A turkey can walk all day, but can fly
> but a few seconds before becoming exhausted.  A migratoryt duck or goose
> has dark breast meat due to its slow muscle capable of flying form Mexico
> to Canada.
>
> By the way the gene for the protein that makes the structure know as
> mitochondria, which is where we use oxygen in the muscle cell, is
> apparently a maternally linked gene.  Thus, great endurance capacity of
> muscle comes from mom........not pops!
>
>
>
> Jon K. Linderman, Ph.D., FACSM
> Assistant Professor of Health and Sport Science
> University of Dayton
> 300 College Park
> Dayton, OH 45469-1210
> Voice:(937) 229-4207
> FAX: (937) 229-4244
> jonlinderman@xxxxxxxxxxx
> http://www.udayton.edu/~linderma
>
>
>
>
>
>                       Truman Prevatt
>                       <tprevatt@mindspring.        To:       Lynne Glazer
<lglazer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>                       com>                         cc:
ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>                       Sent by:                     Subject:  Re: [RC]
Bioengineered Endurance Athletes?
>                       ridecamp-owner@xxxxxx
>                       durance.net
>
>
>                       08/19/2002 08:53 AM
>                       Please respond to
>                       tprevatt

>
>
>
>
>
>
> There was an article in Scientific American about a year or two ago on
> this work and some others. They believe they can change the muscle types
> either way.  This would produce either super sprinters or super
> endurance type muscles. One approach is to alter the genetic composition
> of the muscles on a one time basis to change the structure of the muscle
> fiblers. The IOC can throw all it's durg testing out the door since
> there is nothing to test for.
>
> A brave new world?
>
> Truman
>
> Lynne Glazer wrote:
>
> > Is the horse of the future a transgenic beast? <g>
> >
> > Scientists create 'endurance' mouse
> >
> > May lead to wonder drug for distance athletes
> > By Kate Tobin
> > CNN Sci-Tech
> >
> > BOSTON, Massachusetts (CNN) --Mighty Mouse lives, and the "new age"
> > version is downright buff.
> >
> > Researchers say they have created a transgenic mouse with muscles like
> > a marathoner, capable of enduring rigorous exercise for extended
> > periods of time.
> >
> > While so far the research has only been conducted on mice, scientists
> > say they expect the techniques they've developed to treat the mouse
> > muscle will also work on humans. Doctors say the discovery may one day
> > lead to new treatments for people who are bedridden or have
> > degenerative muscle disease, and could prove to be a wonder drug for
> > endurance athletes like long distance runners or cross country skiers.
> >
> > Bruce Spiegelman and colleagues at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
> > identified a biochemical called PGC-1 that operates as a molecular
> > switch, converting so-called "fast-twitch" muscle, which is strong but
> > tires quickly, into high-endurance "slow-twitch" muscle.
> >
> > "PGC-1 appears to be the switch, or a major component of it, that
> > enables your body's muscles to adjust to the demands being put on
> > them," said Spiegelman. "Understanding how this system works could
> > make it possible to develop a drug to manipulate this system."
> >
> > Muscle is made up of a combination of different types of fibers.
> > Endurance athletes train long and hard to build up slow-twitch muscle
> > fibers, called Type I fibers, which are long and lean and can keep
> > pumping for long periods of aerobic exercise. Sprinters or
> > weightlifters, on the other hand, have muscle rich in fast-twitch,
> > Type II fibers. These muscles are bulkier and stronger but tire quickly.
> >
> > Further studies
> >
> > To create the endurance mouse, Spiegelman's group bioengineered PGC-1
> > into mouse muscle tissue. They expected that it would promote the
> > development of cellular power plants called mitochondria, which fuel
> > the growth and development of slow-twitch muscle fiber. But they were
> > surprised to find that PGC-1 appeared to be converting Type II
> > fast-twitch fibers into Type I slow-twitch fibers.
> >
> > The muscle itself actually changed color, taking on a reddish hue
> > characteristic of oxygen-rich tissue. Further, in an endurance test at
> > a Texas laboratory, the bioengineered muscle turned out to contract
> > efficiently two and a half times longer than regular muscle.
> >
> > Spiegelman cautions that there is still five to 10 years of work to be
> > done before PGC-1 based treatments will be available.
> >
> > The research is published in this week's edition of the journal Nature.
> >
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