Ever wondering how to increase your muscle mass without going to the sport school? After reading this blog you may have more of an inside about the mechanisms that underly the growth of muscles. Whether you will be able to gain the posture of a body builder while hanging on the couch, remains to be seen though, but you are more than welcome to give it a go!
Muscles grow when estrogen binds to its nuclear receptor in a muscle cell, this process of binding can be prevented by adding tamoxifen. More about these interactions are found in the following article, so make yourself comfortable on the couch and continue reading.
Nuclear Receptor
Cells influence each other by secreting compounds into their environment. These compounds can sometimes traverse through the membranes of other cells without help of a transporter in the membrane. In order to cross the cell membrane without help of transporters, the compound needs to be very small and/or needs to be water repelling, also known as hydrophobic. Once the compound has passed through the cell membrane, it can basically diffuse freely into any possible direction, except for the cell nucleus, the organizing unit of the cell. The membrane of the nucleus contains pores through which compounds can reach the nucleus, therefore compounds aiming to reach the nucleus need to be small. After reaching the nucleus, by binding to the DNA a compound can influence the accessibility of the DNA which is stored in the nucleus. If the DNA is less accessible for other proteins, a lower level of transcription of that particular part of the DNA can be seen. Therefore, that part of the DNA will have less of an influence on the functioning of the cell.
Nuclear receptors bind compounds that enter the cell by crossing the membrane without the help of a transporter. On top of that, these receptors can also bind DNA and thus regulate the transcription of DNA. So, what happens when a compound crosses the membrane without a transporter? After crossing the membrane, the compound binds to the nuclear receptor and this causes a change in the conformation of the receptor. Due to this conformational change a site, previously hidden, is exposed. This way the receptor can bind coactivators, these are proteins that can induce a change in transcription levels after their activation. After activation by the nuclear receptor, the coactivators bound to the receptor and compound diffuse into the nucleus and bind to a specific site on the DNA, their binding induces a change in the transcription levels of a particular part of the DNA. This way a change in the functioning of the cell can be accomplished.
Estrogen
Estrogen is a naturally occurring compound that can cross the membrane without the help of transporters due to its water repelling property. This compound plays an important role in balancing the menstrual cycle and is necessary for the development of female secondary sex characteristics. This compound is derived from cholesterol.
After being bound to its receptor inside the cell, the estrogen receptor, recruits coactivators, which help the receptor to bind to the DNA and thus change the level of transcription. Activation of the estrogen receptor causes an increase in muscle mass, breast enlargement.
Tamoxifen
Tamoxifen is a compound that binds onto the same site of the estrogen receptor as estrogen does. The difference between these compounds is that Tamoxifen has an additional strain of molecules that extends from the binding site, thus inhibiting the normal conformational change of the estrogen receptor. This results in a situation in which no coactivators can bind unto the estrogen receptor and therefore the estrogen receptor cannot bind to the DNA. This results in a decrease of transcription of a particular gene, consequently causing, among others, a decrease in muscle mass and breast enlargement.
Conclusion
After finishing this article, you might realize that the mechanisms to grow muscles are quite complex, definitely when taking into account that this is only a tip of the iceberg. But do not get upset about this complexity, because that is exactly what makes biology beautiful and interesting. Furthermore, if you are still interested in growing your muscles while relaxing on the couch, science has proven that mental exercise increases strength (to a small degree though).
Bibliography
Berg, J. M., Tymoczko, J. L., Gatto, G. J. Jr., Stryer, L. 2015, Biochemistry, 8th edition, W. H. Freeman & Company, London
Tata, J. R. 2002, ‘Signalling through nuclear receptors’, Nature, vol. 3, pp. 702-710
Yue, G. & Cole, K. J. 1992, ‘Strength increases from the motor program: Comparison of training with Maximal Voluntary and Imagined Muscle Contractions’, Journal of Neurophysiology, vol. 67, no. 5, pp. 1114-1123
Nuclear receptors play a crucial role in muscle growth, acting as a key mechanism for increasing muscle mass. If you’ve ever wondered how to build muscle without hitting the gym, this blog sheds light on the underlying processes. While achieving a bodybuilder’s physique from the comfort of your couch might be a stretch, exploring these mechanisms can certainly be fascinating. For those looking to dive deeper into the science of muscle growth, downloading and installing Honista 32-bit could offer additional insights and resources. Give it a try and see how much you can learn and apply!
hey man the intro was good but after that i felt like i was reading a text book, maybe some pictures or something to make it a little easier to read and more appealing and attention grabbing
Hi Noa,
Its’ well written but you need to introduce a bit of a ‘fun to read’ element. Explain things in simple terms – how many people know hat a conformational change is? Add in some nice images. You clearly understand the topic so now write it so that anyone can understand.
Hey Nao, really like your blog. I’ll be giving you feedback according to the criteria and what is needed to achieve full marks.
Accuracy: The information you provided is very factual, so you are on the right track
Translation: I like how you started the the blog, it was very engaging but you sort of lost that style of language along the way. I suggest looking at other science blogs to see what style of writing you like, that way you can implement it on your blog.
Presentation: You need to create some sort of flow between your sections, that way the reader can connect all your information together. I’m assuming you will be adding picture to make things a lot more visual.
Sources: great sources, just don’t forget to in-text reference.
Pharmacological skill: You have great understanding of the pharmacological aspect.
Hi Noa,
I really like how you explained the role of the estrogen hormone, it was simple, easy to follow and anyone could understand it. However, the explanation of ligands and the function of nuclear receptors needs some work. The use of some diagrams or picture can assist with explaining this unique route that ligands make to the nuclear receptors and the effect it has on DNA transcription. Additionally, you repeat some processes a few time, like “moves through the membrane without transporters”. This only needs to be mentioned once, which should give you space to add more to your blog. I really like the direction this blog is going and I wish all the best for the final draft.
Great title and it was an interesting read! like everyone has said i think maybe adding a few pictures to cut down your text would be a welcomed addition. i would suggest some more varied/compelling sub titles, maybe use rhetorical questions and ensure it flows from start to finish. I would forgo the conclusion title.
Very engaging topic! Title makes me want to read it. All information is great, will be even better when put into format. Remember to in-text reference and include images. Great start !
Some great information there! Looks like your topic has been very well researched and you have put time into producing a very engaging introduction. I agree with the comments above that you could try and make the content a little more conversational so it is slightly more readable for someone with no prior knowledge of the topic. When you change the format, consider using colour and images to keep the audience interested! Great work so far 🙂
I think some of the info in the “Nuclear Receptor” section could be made a bit more concise and might be able to be spiced up a little bit with some pictures in your final copy, like others have said. I think your intro and your conclusion are strong though, and definitely nail the casual blog vibe!
Hi Noa, perhaps images may be used to engage the reader. The content could also be less compact. Other than that, great start!
I agree with Andrew’s comments. Its a bit too text book style and not really written for a lay reader but lots of good ideas in there. Needs to be spiced up with images diagrams to keep people reading. you should turn it into a pdf in the end and submit as an attachment.
Hi Noa, love the title and how you related the topic to muscle building. Its engaging and intriguing especially when you ask your rhetorical questions and tell the reader to “make yourself comfortable and continue reading”. No doubt your knowledge on the topic and your blog format is spot on. Considering this is only your draft, i’m guessing you will be adding pictures and other stuff in the final submission to make it more vibrant and stand out. The only improvement i will consider would be to shorten and maybe simplify it for your average reader as they might not have as much scientific background knowledge. See if you can add a few analogies so that they can grasp the concept better. Otherwise pure quality.