Creatine Supplementation and Skeletal Muscle Metabolism for Building Muscle Mass- Review of the Potential Mechanisms of Action.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review synthesizing mechanistic hypotheses with no primary data or systematic search methodology
PubMed 28595527 · doi:10.2174/1389203718666170606105108
What was done
The authors reviewed published literature evaluating the potential physiological and cellular mechanisms of action through which creatine supplementation promotes skeletal muscle growth and hypertrophy.
What was found
The abstract reports no quantitative data or specific numbers. It outlines several proposed mechanistic pathways: an osmotic cellular swelling effect that acts as an anabolic stimulus, direct modulation of protein synthesis through the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway, and enhanced myogenesis through altered myokine secretion (such as IGF-1 and myostatin) along with increased satellite cell proliferation and differentiation.
Why it matters
Clarifying the cellular pathways of creatine helps explain its well-documented ergogenic benefits and informs future therapeutic approaches for muscle-wasting conditions.
Limits
As reported in the abstract, there is no quantitative synthesis, sample size is not stated, and the definitive causality and relative contribution of each proposed pathway remain unclear.
Cited by
- supports Creatine supplementation increases muscle satellite cells and IGF-1, decreases myostatin, and reduces reactive oxygen species.