Does myostatin sensitivity in older individuals explain frailty and aging?

Muscle loss occurs with aging and underlies aging-associated frailty and sarcopenia. Understanding the aging process, and how to ‘successfully age’ is a key challenge to Western society and stated target for UK and EU research bodies. My group studies myostatin, a key regulator of human muscle mass, and has recent novel, exciting findings on myostatin family of proteins and their responses to resistance training and aging in humans.

Based on this data, we hypothesize myostatin ‘sensitivity’ may differ between younger and older individuals, potentially explaining muscular frailty in older individuals. Thus, this project will characterise the myostatin response of older and younger individual to anabolic stimuli. This project will examine 1) the acute myostatin response to a single bout of resistance training, 2) the rate of change in muscle gain and myostatin system in younger and older individuals during chronic anabolic stimuli and 3) in vitro myoblasts and myotubes in ‘young’ and ‘old’ conditions to probe methodological processes.

The candidate will receive training in relevant techniques and gain expertise in a number of key project planning and analytical research and subject specific skills. The student will also take part in the University Graduate School and Faculty Doctoral Research Development Programme (DRDP) including transferable skills (e.g. presentation skills, scientific writing and employability skills) which aid in future career progression. The student will also join relevant learned societies, providing excellent support for training opportunities and meetings to disseminate and publish their research.