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What is the cause of the ageing atrophy? Total number, size and proportion of different fiber types studied in whole vastus lateralis muscle from 15- to 83-year-old men

Lexell, Jan LU ; Taylor, Charles C and Sjostrom, Michael (1988) In Journal of the Neurological Sciences 84(2-3). p.275-294
Abstract
In order to study the effects of increasing age on the human skeletal muscle, cross-sections (15 micron) of autopsied whole vastus lateralis muscle from 43 previously physically healthy men between 15 and 83 years of age were prepared and examined. The data obtained on muscle area, total number, size, proportion and distribution of type 1 (slow-twitch) and type 2 (fast-twitch) fibers were analysed using multivariate regression. The results show that the ageing atrophy of this muscle begins around 25 years of age and thereafter accelerates. This is caused mainly by a loss of fibers, with no predominant effect on any fiber type, and to a lesser extent by a reduction in fiber size, mostly of type 2 fibers. The results also suggest the... (More)
In order to study the effects of increasing age on the human skeletal muscle, cross-sections (15 micron) of autopsied whole vastus lateralis muscle from 43 previously physically healthy men between 15 and 83 years of age were prepared and examined. The data obtained on muscle area, total number, size, proportion and distribution of type 1 (slow-twitch) and type 2 (fast-twitch) fibers were analysed using multivariate regression. The results show that the ageing atrophy of this muscle begins around 25 years of age and thereafter accelerates. This is caused mainly by a loss of fibers, with no predominant effect on any fiber type, and to a lesser extent by a reduction in fiber size, mostly of type 2 fibers. The results also suggest the occurrence of several other age-related adaptive mechanisms which could influence fiber sizes and fiber number, as well as enzyme histochemical fiber characteristics. (Less)
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author
; and
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Muscular atrophy, Muscles, Microscopy, Histocytochemistry, Biopsy, Aging
in
Journal of the Neurological Sciences
volume
84
issue
2-3
pages
275 - 294
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • pmid:3379447
  • scopus:0023856536
ISSN
1878-5883
DOI
10.1016/0022-510X(88)90132-3
language
English
LU publication?
no
id
9efa299d-94f7-41b4-aaf3-a7168d426ca5 (old id 1104276)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 11:33:15
date last changed
2021-10-10 04:33:27
@article{9efa299d-94f7-41b4-aaf3-a7168d426ca5,
  abstract     = {{In order to study the effects of increasing age on the human skeletal muscle, cross-sections (15 micron) of autopsied whole vastus lateralis muscle from 43 previously physically healthy men between 15 and 83 years of age were prepared and examined. The data obtained on muscle area, total number, size, proportion and distribution of type 1 (slow-twitch) and type 2 (fast-twitch) fibers were analysed using multivariate regression. The results show that the ageing atrophy of this muscle begins around 25 years of age and thereafter accelerates. This is caused mainly by a loss of fibers, with no predominant effect on any fiber type, and to a lesser extent by a reduction in fiber size, mostly of type 2 fibers. The results also suggest the occurrence of several other age-related adaptive mechanisms which could influence fiber sizes and fiber number, as well as enzyme histochemical fiber characteristics.}},
  author       = {{Lexell, Jan and Taylor, Charles C and Sjostrom, Michael}},
  issn         = {{1878-5883}},
  keywords     = {{Muscular atrophy; Muscles; Microscopy; Histocytochemistry; Biopsy; Aging}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2-3}},
  pages        = {{275--294}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Journal of the Neurological Sciences}},
  title        = {{What is the cause of the ageing atrophy? Total number, size and proportion of different fiber types studied in whole vastus lateralis muscle from 15- to 83-year-old men}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0022-510X(88)90132-3}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/0022-510X(88)90132-3}},
  volume       = {{84}},
  year         = {{1988}},
}