Exercise and Regulation of Protein Metabolism

Skeletal muscles exhibit radical changes in physiology and metabolism in response to exercise. While exercise induces highly specific physiological changes, e.g., hypertrophy, associated with weightlifting or oxygen utilization associated with aerobic-type exercises, the foundation of these changes is driven by the summation of exercise-induced alterations in muscle protein metabolism. Practically, any type of exercise stimulates muscle protein turnover, the purpose being both to renew, and also modify, the myocellular composition of proteins in line with adaptations according to the mechanical and metabolic demands imposed. The mechanism(s) by which exercise stimulates protein turnover has been the subset of intense study. These studies have been led by the use of stable isotopically labeled amino acids. Essentially, use of these heavier variants (e.g., (13)C AA vs. (12)C) coupled to mass spectrometry has enabled study of the dynamic responses of muscle protein turnover to exercise. Using these techniques, it has become patently clear that exercise stimulates muscle protein turnover, i.e., muscle protein synthesis (MPS) and breakdown (MPB). Moreover, intake of specific nutrients (i.e., dietary proteins) potentiates MPS while attenuating MPB, facilitating maintenance of proteostasis and exercise adaptation. The mechanisms driving these protein metabolic responses to exercise include the coordinated activation of mRNA translation pathways (e.g., mechanistic target of rapamycin) and multiple MPB pathways (e.g., autophagy and ubiquitin-proteasome). These processes are triggered by exercise-induced hormone, auto/paracrine-acting growth factors, mechanical transduction, and intramyocellular second messenger pathways. Finally, there remains poor understanding of how distinct exercise modes (e.g., resistance vs. endurance) lead to such distinct adaptations from a protein metabolic and molecular standpoint.