title: Aging of human muscle: understanding sarcopenia at the single muscle cell level.
abstract: The loss of muscle mass with age, also known as sarcopenia, is a major scientific and public health problem. Muscle atrophy is associated with the loss of functional capacity and poor health outcomes in elderly men and women. A detailed understanding of this problem in humans can be enhanced by the use of experiments with single muscle fibers. It is likely that both muscle atrophy and a decrease in muscle-fiber quality contribute to muscle dysfunction among the elderly. A better understanding of sarcopenia at the single-fiber level may lead to the design of more effective rehabilitative interventions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, PR 00936, USA. walter.frontera@upr.edu
authors.forename: Walter R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Frontera
authors.forename: Ana Rodriguez
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Zayas
authors.forename: Natividad
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D006801:Humans; D018485:Muscle Fibers, Skeletal / Q000473:pathology* / Q000502:physiology; D018908:Muscle Weakness / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055948:Sarcopenia / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012737:Sex Factors