Study reveals how exercise improves metabolic health

“Moreover, we may think about converting this knowledge into a drug at some stage.”The team have already taken a step in this direction by narrowing the field to one particular microRNA molecule called miR-203-3p.They showed that when muscles have used up all their own glucose stores during prolonged exercise, miR-203-3p signals the fat tissue to make more fuel available.“We found this metabolic flexibility to be essential to good health as well as performance enhancement,” says Mori.Intriguingly, their previous research in mice has found that caloric restriction also increases production of miR-203-3p.Evidence from animal research and a few studies in humans suggests that tightly restricting calorie intake — for example, through intermittent fasting — may help stave off conditions associated with aging, such as diabetes and heart disease.In muscle cells, a molecular sensor called AMPK is activated when the cells consume large amounts of ATP, which is the fuel that powers all the cells’ activities.AMPK activation is known to play a role in the metabolic benefits of both caloric restriction and aerobic exercise.In their latest series of experiments, the researchers showed that aerobic exercise activated AMPK in the muscle and fat cells of mice.