Researchers investigated the quantities of thousands of
muscle proteins and found a possible new explanation for
muscle memory. A study showed for the first time that muscles
"remember" training at the protein level. It is often thought that
the effects of exercise are short-lived, and a break from the
gym can cause stress over muscle loss. However, the research
has shown that this stress is partly unnecessary, as the effects
of resistance training persist in muscles for up to two months
and the gains are fast when training is started again. But what
mechanisms and changes at the cellular and molecular levels
explain muscle memory? In the study, ten weeks of resistance
training was followed by a break of the same length and then
followed by another ten weeks of resistance training. Using the
proteomics method, it was possible to study the quantities of
over 3,000 muscle proteins using advanced mass
spectrometry equipment. The study found two types of change
profiles in muscle proteins. Some proteins changed as a result
of training, returned to their pre-training state during the break,
and changed again during the new training period similarly to
the first training period. These included proteins related to
aerobic metabolism. Another group of proteins changed as a
result of training and remained changed during the break and
after the new training period. Among these proteins were
several calcium-binding proteins, such as calpain-2, whose
gene has recently been identified to retain a memory trace
even after a training break. "At the level of the number of
muscle nuclei and the memory traces of genes, that is,
epigenetics, long-term responses that persist even after a
break and possibly explain 'muscle memory' have previously
been observed," says a researcher. "Now, for the first time, we
have shown that muscles 'remember' previous resistance
training at the protein level for at least two and a half months."
Disponível em https://jyu.fi/en/news/. 14 April 2025. Adaptado.
A espectrometria de massas, utilizada para a identificação das
proteínas no estudo apresentado no texto, é uma técnica que
permite determinar com precisão a massa molecular de
moléculas carregadas. A determinação da massa exata da
molécula é feita a partir do conhecimento da sua carga e da
razão massa/carga (m/z), parâmetro que influencia no
movimento das espécies, permitindo sua determinação. Caso
a carga das moléculas seja unitária, a razão m/z é
numericamente igual à massa da espécie a ser identificada.
Caso a carga seja 2, a razão m/z detectada é metade da
massa da molécula.
A imagem a seguir representa, na forma de um gráfico, o
resultado de uma análise por espectrometria de massas de
uma amostra pura contendo apenas uma espécie intacta com
fórmula molecular [C44H69NO12Ca]2+ e massa exata,
considerando os isótopos mais abundantes, de 843,444 g/mol, detectada como m/z 421,722.
A presença de outros sinais além do sinal de m/z 421,722,
mesmo em uma amostra pura não contendo nenhuma outra
espécie além do [C44H69NO12Ca]2+, deve-se
