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Muscle Fiber Type Switching

Meaning

The remarkable physiological phenomenon where mature skeletal muscle fibers undergo a transformation, altering their contractile, metabolic, and enzymatic characteristics from one fiber type to another. This adaptive plasticity is a direct response to chronic changes in physical activity patterns and systemic hormonal signals, allowing the muscle to precisely match its functional capacity to the imposed mechanical and energetic demands. The ability to induce this switching, particularly toward more oxidative, fatigue-resistant fibers, is a key therapeutic target in exercise physiology for improving metabolic health and endurance capacity.