Muscle Protein Synthesis Signaling refers to the intricate intracellular cascade, primarily involving the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, that governs the rate at which skeletal muscle tissue builds new contractile proteins. This signaling is highly sensitive to mechanical loading, amino acid availability, and anabolic hormones like testosterone and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). It is the biochemical command to repair and grow muscle mass.
Origin
This concept stems directly from exercise biochemistry, where signaling describes the sequence of molecular events transmitting an external stimulus into a specific cellular response—in this case, translation initiation.
Mechanism
Mechanical tension activates upstream kinases, leading to the phosphorylation and activation of Akt, which subsequently de-represses the tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) leading to mTOR activation. Activated mTOR then phosphorylates downstream targets like S6K1 and 4E-BP1, thereby increasing the rate of ribosomal translation. Hormonal inputs modulate the sensitivity of these steps, often by regulating Akt activity.
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