Exerkines: A Crosstalk between Lactate Production, Exercise and Mental Health.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review and mechanistic synthesis without original human data
PubMed 37842902 · doi:10.2174/0118715273250928231009054658
What was done
This is a narrative review synthesizing literature on skeletal muscle-derived exerkines, focusing on lactate as a signaling molecule mediating communication between muscle and brain tissue to promote mental health.
What was found
The abstract reports no quantitative data, statistics, or effect sizes. It describes a mechanistic framework wherein intensity-dependent lactate production from type IIb fast-twitch muscle fibers induces brain BDNF expression via SIRT 1 and 2 activation and the downstream PGC1-α cascade.
Why it matters
It emphasizes the shift in viewing lactate as an active metabolic messenger and potential exerkine mediator of exercise-induced neuroplasticity rather than just a metabolic byproduct.
Limits
The paper is a narrative review presenting mechanism-based reasoning without new empirical human data. The abstract provides no quantitative metrics, search criteria, or clinical outcome measurements.
Cited by
- supports During vigorous exercise, muscles synthesize lactate and myokines that enter circulation and signal to tissues to stimulate the synthesis of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF).