Sarcopenia is a major challenge in aging populations as it directly affects mobility, metabolic health, quality of life and increased risk of decline in mental health and numerous diseases of aging such as Type II Diabetes. Targeting sarcopenia is a major target for healthy aging and quicker recovery from hospitalizations in the elderly. However much is not known about sarcopenia in elderly.

This study is a collaboration between , Bangalore Baptist Hospital,  Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (inStem),  and Vayah Vikas is a registered Public Trust, with an ambition to improve the lives of elderly for enhanced quality and dignified living. The Scope of collaboration on academic and research activities in understanding Nutritional and environmental factors in age related skeletal muscle loss in elderly.

There is significant association between nutritional cues and ability of human beings to maintain skeletal muscle mass, especially as they age. Nutrients directly or through signalling pathways (e.g. insulin-PI3K, mTOR) alter rates of protein synthesis and turnover, thereby controlling muscle mass and function. In recent years, studies carried out in western populations have pointed out that nutrients such as Vitamin D, antioxidants, branched chain amino acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids can have a positive impact on the progression of sarcopenia along with physical activity. The levels and trajectory of the leves of these nutrients in aged population, in developing nations such as India are not known.  Filling this gap in knowledge will provide new nutritional and metabolic targets for treatment of sarcopenia.

The microbiome has established itself as a major modifier of physiology and health in humans. Recently it has been shown that in both western and Chinese populations there are significant alterations in the composition of the gut microbiome, that correlates with sarcopenia. This offers an exciting possibility that restoring the composition of the microbiome may be able to prevent or manage sarcopenia.

There is a need to model sarcopenia in vitro, which will enable rapid and personalized treatments against this disease. It is unclear whether features of sarcopenia can be modelled from patient PBMC derived myoblasts. Dr. Aravind has been studying sarcopenia in mice and the various pathways involved in it.  Through this collaboration we want to explore whether those pathways are expressed in human cells as well.

In this study, we are looking at 4 possible groups – elderly with sarcopenia, elderly without sarcopenia, elderly functionally mobile (before fracture) coming to hospital with long bone fracture needing immobilisation and young coming to hospital with long bone fracture needing immobilisation.  We will look at the metabolites in their blood and microbiome in their gut to see any differences in sarcopenia group.