The skeleton has protective, mechanical and metabolic roles. Bone should be strong to prevent fractures, but light, enabling movement in a gravitational environment. Bone remodelling, the cellular machinery responsible for bone integrity and strength, is a finely balanced process responsive to mechanical loads and hormonal changes. As bone remodelling requires energy, it was hypothesised that hormones produced by bone may have endocrine-like effects beyond the skeleton. Indeed, in recent years it was discovered that a crosstalk exists between bone and skeletal muscle.
Exercise is a non-pharmacological intervention that improves bone and muscle health simultaneously, reducing the risk for osteoporosis and sarcopenia, as well as improves glucose disposal, reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes. As such, exercise can be used as a tool to uncover the interaction/s between bone and muscle, as well as mechanisms involved in this crosstalk. Indeed, it was reported that the circulating levels of some bone hormones (such as osteocalcin and osteoglycin) are not only related/correlated with insulin sensitivity and improved glucose control, but also have a direct effect on these measures.
This presentation will explore the effects of exercise on BRMs as well the link between BRMs, in particular osteocalcin, and skeletal muscle function and metabolism at rest and post-exercise. A better understanding of the mechanisms behind the interactions of exercise, BRMs and glucose regulation may provide new pharmacological and non-pharmacological avenues to prevent and manage diseases such as type 2 diabetes and sarcopenia.