York University’s Muscle Health Research Centre (MHRC) has secured the fourth position worldwide for skeletal muscle research in the ScholarGPS Institutional Rankings. This achievement, based on the centre’s impact over the past five years, places York among the leading institutions in this field of study.
Assessing citation metrics, the ScholarGPS rankings reflect the influence of published research on the global scientific community. The system tracks the number of times a researcher’s publications are cited by other publications, calculating a percentile ranking for collective publications’ citations within specific disciplines. “We publish work that is highly influential to researchers around the world in the field of muscle physiology,” says Christopher Perry, director of the MHRC and a professor in the School of Kinesiology & Health Science.
The MHRC’s work spans a wide range of muscle-health topics. Researchers delve into how muscles generate energy from sugar, fat and protein, while also investigating how these nutrients affect muscle mass and strength. These findings have implications for conditions ranging from diabetes to cancer-related muscle wasting.
“Muscle health determines whole-body health,” Perry explains. This concept guides MHRC’s investigations into the relationship between muscle function and various health conditions. “So many diseases are linked to muscle weakness, muscle wasting or poor muscle metabolism.”
Efforts at MHRC have illuminated muscle problems in diseases such as muscular dystrophies, cancer cachexia (severe muscle wasting in cancer), diabetes and heart disorders. “Think of all the diseases that make someone feel ‘weak and tired.’ This is often because their muscles are failing.”
By integrating fundamental research with practical applications, MHRC has uncovered mechanisms controlling muscle-fibre development through analyses of muscle stem cells. These discoveries could lead to new treatments. “We’ve been developing new therapies in pre-clinical studies with industry and clinical teams, aiming to pave the way for clinical trials for various muscle-related diseases,” Perry adds.
Exercise’s impact on muscle health and fitness is another key area of the MHRC’s focus. Their research has revealed how different types of exercise affect muscle metabolism, strength and endurance. These insights could improve quality of life and reduce health-care costs, especially for older adults who rely on healthy muscles to maintain independence and avoid frailty.
Exploring protein utilization in muscle mass and strength building has yielded applications for addressing muscle weakness in aging, chemotherapy side effects and metabolic disorders. Recent studies have identified specific protein types and consumption patterns that may be particularly beneficial for maintaining muscle mass during aging or illness.
Analyses of cardiovascular function have provided important information about blood flow’s effect on muscle performance. This work has implications not only for muscle health but also for overall cardiovascular function and disease prevention. Meanwhile, research on metabolic disorders, particularly diabetes, has clarified the connection between insulin resistance in muscle and blood sugar levels. The MHRC’s findings suggest that improving muscle insulin sensitivity could be a key strategy in managing Type 2 diabetes.
These diverse research streams offer a comprehensive view of how muscle health affects overall well-being. The findings are important for many health conditions, from age-related frailty to muscle weakness in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Work on cancer cachexia, for instance, has identified potential interventions that could help maintain muscle mass and strength during cancer treatment, potentially improving patient outcomes.
As the MHRC pushes forward in muscle-health research, its impact on scientific understanding and potential treatments grows. “Our work aims to unravel how muscles develop poor metabolism, impaired blood flow and weakness,” Perry says. “By understanding these mechanisms, we’re paving the way for new therapies that not only maintain muscle health but also reduce the risk of frailty and complications across a spectrum of diseases. This recognition reflects our commitment to research that truly makes a difference in people’s lives.”