A struggling heart and weakening muscles are part of aging and are often considered to happen separately. But new research suggests they may influence each other in a condition known as cardio-sarcopenia. One North Texas researcher is working to stop it — and recently got a big financial boost for his effort.
The Dallas-based American Heart Association this month awarded Kamal Awad, an assistant professor of research in kinesiology and bioengineering at the University of Texas at Arlington, the Career Development Award to further his work. The award provides $231,000 over the next three years.
“Cardio-sarcopenia is a pretty new term,” said Awad. “What we found is that cardiac and muscle decline go hand-in-hand.”
Cardio-sarcopenia may be triggered by a phenomenon called “inflammaging,” or increased inflammation with age that impacts the entire body. This inflammaging contributes to health conditions such as heart disease and arthritis.
When comparing mice with sarcopenia against their healthy counterparts, Awad and his colleagues found unique molecular and structural changes happening in both the heart and skeletal muscle tissues. For example, in one study, Awad and his colleagues found a hormone-like substance significantly decreased in the muscles of mice with sarcopenia. When levels of this substance increased, muscle health improved.
With cardiovascular issues and sarcopenia expected to affect more older adults as life expectancy improves in the United States, Awad said finding preventions and treatments to counter cardio-sarcopenia is crucial.
Health care providers give patients combinations of supplements, he said, but there is no treatment approved by the Food and Drug Administration. He added that that lack is why people in the field are interested in this research.
At his lab, Awad wants to investigate how exercise could mitigate cardio-sarcopenia. Several different molecules are produced by the body that could enhance cardiac and musculoskeletal health. One of these is called beta-aminoisobutyric acid, or BAIBA. In some animal studies, this natural chemical has been shown to support muscle and bone cells, and when used as a supplement maximizes health benefits animals get when exercising.
“When we exercise, our muscles secrete BAIBA and this BAIBA has a cardio-protective function,” Awad said. He added that he hopes to test using exercise and supplementing it with BAIBA in animal models of cardio-sarcopenia. If that shows success, he and his colleagues eventually want to move to human trials.
An ultimate goal of the research is to prevent cardio-sarcopenia, whose roots start in middle-age.
“Right now, sarcopenia hospitalization and related events cost $40 billion,” Awad said. “That’s a massive number … Starting from age 35, we lose our muscles at a rate of 3% to 8% per decade. That’s why we definitely really need something.”