title: [Allopurinol and its role in the treatment of sarcopenia].
abstract: Xanthine oxidase (XO) is an enzyme that catalyzes the oxidation of hypoxanthine to xanthine and uric acid and plays an important role in purine catabolism. The purine analogue, allopurinol, is a well-known inhibitor of XO widely used in the clinical management of gout and conditions associated with hyperuricemia. More recent data indicate that allopurinol reduces oxidative stress and improves vascular function in several cardiometabolic diseases, prolongs exercise time in angina, and improves the efficiency of cardiac contractility in heart failure. XO also plays an important role in free radical generation during skeletal muscle contraction and thus, it has been related to the muscle damage associated to exhaustive exercise. Several research groups have shown the protective effect of allopurinol in the prevention of this type of damage. Based on this background, a critical overview is presented on the possible role of allopurinol in the treatment of sarcopenia, a geriatric syndrome characterized by progressive and generalized loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength with a risk of adverse outcomes, such as physical disability, poor quality of life and death.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Valencia, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario/INCLIVA, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Beatriz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ferrando
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Valencia, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario/INCLIVA, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Gloria
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Olaso-Gonzalez
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Medicina Física y Rehabilitación, Hospital La Fe, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Vicente
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Sebastia
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Medicina Física y Rehabilitación, Hospital La Fe, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Enrique
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Viosca
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Valencia, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario/INCLIVA, Valencia, España.
authors.forename: Mari Carmen
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Gomez-Cabrera
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Valencia, Fundación Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario/INCLIVA, Valencia, España. Electronic address: jose.vina@uv.es.
authors.forename: Jose
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Viña
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000493:Allopurinol / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016166:Free Radical Scavengers / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D055948:Sarcopenia / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000201:enzymology; D014969:Xanthine Oxidase / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D016166:Free Radical Scavengers; D000493:Allopurinol; D014969:Xanthine Oxidase
keywords: Atrofia; Atrophy; E3 ubiquitin ligases; E3 ubiquitinligasas; Estrés oxidativo; Músculo esquelético; Oxidative stress; Skeletal muscle; Xanthine oxidase; Xantina oxidasa