{"id":300422,"date":"2025-11-19T03:53:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T03:53:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/300422\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T03:53:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T03:53:14","slug":"scientists-discover-molecule-that-acts-like-exercise-and-slows-signs-of-ageing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/300422\/","title":{"rendered":"Scientists discover molecule that acts like exercise and slows signs of ageing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

For years, scientists have tried to unpack why regular exercise <\/a>keeps the body young while a single tough workout can feel like it knocks everything off balance. A new study published in Cell <\/a>has revealed some important ideas. Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Xuanwu Hospital Capital Medical University tracked how the body reacts to training over time and found a molecule quietly doing some heavy lifting behind the scenes.<\/p>\n

\"Researchers Researchers found that betaine molecule seemed to carry many of the same benefits as training itself(Representative image\/Unsplash) <\/p>\n

The compound is betaine – something the kidneys <\/a>produce naturally and a nutrient you also get from foods like spinach or beets. Researchers found that betaine levels not only rose during long-term exercise, but that the molecule seemed to carry many of the same benefits as training itself.<\/p>\n

Also read: Experts warn against labeling aging as disease, say it may fuel stigma<\/a><\/p>\n

The kidney steps into the spotlight<\/p>\n

To get there, the team followed 13 healthy men for six years. They measured everything they could: genes, proteins, gut bacteria<\/a> and even how the body behaved after a single 5 km run versus nearly a month of steady training. The kidney kept showing up as the quiet control centre, Science Daily<\/a> said.<\/p>\n

During sustained exercise, the body ramped up betaine production through an enzyme called CHDH. That spike sent protective signals across the body, improving immune strength, calming inflammation, and stabilising age-linked changes in T cells.<\/p>\n

Short-term workouts, on the other hand, told a different story. A single hard run stirred inflammation and what the researchers called \u201cmetabolic chaos.\u201d But once exercise became a habit, the system settled. Gut bacteria improved while antioxidant defences rose.<\/p>\n

Also read: Study reveals links between parental traits and distinct cognitive skills in gifted children<\/a><\/p>\n

Why betaine may matter more than expected<\/p>\n

The biggest twist came when the team tested betaine on its own. Giving the molecule to older mice mirrored many of the effects of training – better metabolism, sharper cognitive function, lower inflammation, and even fewer depressive-like behaviours.<\/p>\n

A big part of that comes down to inflammation <\/a>control. The researchers found betaine binds to TBK1, a kinase that fuels inflammatory pathways. By blocking TBK1 and its IRF3\/NF-\u03baB signalling route, betaine quieted the chronic low-grade inflammation tied to ageing – a process often called \u201cinflammaging.\u201d<\/p>\n

Co-corresponding author Dr Liu Guang-Hui called the findings a shift in how we understand exercise medicine. \u201cThis redefines \u2018exercise as medicine\u2019,\u201d he told Science Daily.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis study gives us a fresh way to turn how our body works into something we can target with chemicals. It opens the door to geroprotective treatments that can tweak how multiple organs work together,” he added.<\/p>\n

Betaine is already considered safe, which makes its potential even more intriguing – especially for people who cannot train consistently. The molecule may never replace movement, but it points to a future where exercise benefits might not rely on exercise alone.<\/p>\n

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For years, scientists have tried to unpack why regular exercise keeps the body young while a single tough…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":300423,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[2594,156315,674,156316,337,97,5003,3625],"class_list":{"0":"post-300422","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-aging","9":"tag-betaine","10":"tag-exercise","11":"tag-exercise-molecule","12":"tag-fitness","13":"tag-health","14":"tag-inflammation","15":"tag-metabolism"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=300422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300422\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=300422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=300422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=300422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}