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Sex hormones and skeletal muscle weakness

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Abstract

Human ageing is accompanied with deterioration in endocrine functions the most notable and well characterized of which being the decrease in the production of sex hormones. Current research literature suggests that low sex hormone concentration may be among the key mechanism for sarcopenia and muscle weakness. Within the European large scale MYOAGE project, the role of sex hormones, estrogens and testosterone, in causing the aging-related loss of muscle mass and function was further investigated. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in women is shown to diminish age-associated muscle loss, loss in fast muscle function (power), and accumulation of fat in skeletal muscle. Further HRT raises the protein synthesis rate in skeletal muscle after resistance training, and has an anabolic effect upon connective tissue in both skeletal muscle and tendon, which influences matrix structure and mechanical properties. HRT influences gene expression in e.g. cytoskeletal and cell–matrix proteins, has a stimulating effect upon IGF-I, and a role in IL-6 and adipokine regulation. Despite low circulating steroid-hormone level, postmenopausal women have a high local concentration of steroidogenic enzymes in skeletal muscle.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the support from EC FP7 Collaborative Project MYOAGE (GA-223576) for these studies. The Academy of Finland and Finnish Ministry of Culture and Education are acknowledged for support to the RCT and TWIN STUDIES. In testosterone studies we acknowledge support from Bayer Schering Pharma AG, Berlin, Germany, and Laboratories Besins International, Paris, France, for providing Testogel and placebo. We also thank Prof. Frederick Wu, Dr U. Srinivas-Shankar and and Dr Steve Roberts for their collaboration. Gerontology Research Center is a joint effort between the University of Jyväskylä and the University of Tampere, Finland.

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  1. Gerontology Research Centre, Department of Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland

    Sarianna Sipilä, Eija Pöllänen & Vuokko Kovanen

  2. School of Graduate Entry Medicine and Health, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK

    Marco Narici

  3. Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Institute of Sports Medicine, Bispebjerg Hospital and Centre for Healthy Aging, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Michael Kjaer

  4. Greater Manchester Neurosciences Centre, Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, Salford, UK

    Ross A. Atkinson

  5. Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK

    Ross A. Atkinson

  6. Section of Sport Science, Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark

    Mette Hansen

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  1. Sarianna Sipilä
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Correspondence to Sarianna Sipilä.

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Sipilä, S., Narici, M., Kjaer, M. et al. Sex hormones and skeletal muscle weakness. Biogerontology 14, 231–245 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10522-013-9425-8

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