Functional polymorphisms associated with human muscle size and strength.
BACKGROUND
Skeletal muscle is critically important to human performance and health, but little is known of the genetic factors influencing muscle size, strength, and its response to exercise training. The Functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) Associated with Muscle Size and Strength, or FAMuSS, Study is a multicenter, NIH-funded program to examine the influence of gene polymorphisms on skeletal muscle size and strength before and after resistance exercise training.


METHODS
One thousand men and women, age 18 - 40 yr, will train their nondominant arm for 12 wk. Skeletal muscle size (magnetic resonance imaging) and isometric and dynamic strength will be measured before and after training. Individuals whose baseline values or response to training deviate > or = 1.5 SD will be defined as outliers and examined for genetic variants. Initially candidate genes previously associated with muscle performance will be examined, but the study will ultimately attempt to identify genes associated with muscle performance.


CONCLUSIONS
FAMuSS should help identify genetic factors associated with muscle performance and the response to exercise training. Such insight should contribute to our ability to predict the individual response to exercise training but may also contribute to understanding better muscle physiology, to identifying individuals who are susceptible to muscle loss with environmental challenge, and to developing pharmacologic agents capable of preserving muscle size and function.
Thompson
Paul D
PD
Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT 06102, USA. pthomps@harthosp.org
Moyna
Niall
N
Seip
Richard
R
Price
Thomas
T
Clarkson
Priscilla
P
Angelopoulos
Theodore
T
Gordon
Paul
P
Pescatello
Linda
L
Visich
Paul
P
Zoeller
Robert
R
Devaney
Joseph M
JM
Gordish
Heather
H
Bilbie
Stephen
S
Hoffman
Eric P
EP
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006984:Hypertrophy; D008297:Male; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D014481:United States