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Mitochondria are cell organelles that are present in human cells in their thousands as power plants and are responsible for the production of ATP (adenosine triphosphate), which functions as an energy source so that cells can start working. The cell organelles, are consumed and degraded in a continuous process, but also multiply and grow, depending on the energy requirements of the cell. Scientists at the University of Birmingham have found in a recent study that, particularly in older adults, physical degradation processes are accompanied by increased degradation of mitochondria. Skeletal muscle mass and bodily functions are increasingly lost, so that negative health effects, including falls, can occur. In order to prevent this, they have researched the key mechanism behind the elimination of damaged mitochondria, because, in old age, physical functions must be protected from degradation. In old age, damaged mitochondria accumulate in larger quantities or no longer function optimally, which must be removed. The activation of so-called AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is crucial in this process, as it stimulates the degradation of old and damaged mitochondria that are no longer needed in cells such as muscle cells. The English researchers found out that AMPK activation through activity and exercise as well as healthy nutrition can stimulate the removal of damaged mitochondria. Mitochondria then showed healthy activity in the muscle, which has a positive effect on the physical abilities of older people. Further investigations led them to the conclusion that drugs can have a targeted positive effect on the stimulation of AMPK, so that pharmaceutical companies are currently working on the development of drugs that activate AMPK. However, before pharmacological interventions can be developed in a targeted way, further investigations are required to gain a precise understanding of the degradation process of mitochondria. However, exercise and healthy food already help to maintain muscle mass and physical abilities.

Source: www.heilpraxisnet.de