Skeletal Muscle as Endocrine Organ.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review of physiological mechanisms without systematic search or original human trial data.
PubMed 40879954 · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-88361-3_22
What was done
This is a narrative review summarizing literature on skeletal muscle functioning as an endocrine organ. The authors describe the synthesis and secretion of muscle-derived cytokines and peptides (myokines), the role of physical activity in stimulating their production, and their autocrine, paracrine, and endocrine actions across various tissues including adipose, liver, pancreas, bone, and brain.
What was found
The abstract provides conceptual descriptions rather than empirical measurements or statistical estimates. It reports that exercise stimulates myokine secretion, which mediates systemic benefits including glucose and lipid metabolic regulation, cognitive enhancement, and musculoskeletal development. No numerical findings, effect sizes, or specific study counts are reported in the abstract.
Why it matters
Synthesizes current concepts on how skeletal muscle communicates with distant organs during exercise, highlighting myokines as potential biomarkers for tracking exercise interventions and managing chronic metabolic disorders.
Limits
As a narrative review, it presents no primary human data, systematic search criteria, or meta-analytic pooling. Understanding of specific myokine actions in humans remains limited, and the abstract lacks quantitative results or details on individual myokine pathways.
Cited by
- supports Muscle tissue functions as an endocrine gland by secreting chemicals that regulate metabolism and positively influence brain health.