Systemic muscle wasting is a common condition associated with ageing and chronic disease, and it strongly predicts adverse health outcomes. Despite its clinical relevance, reliable biomarkers and effective pharmacological treatments remain limited.
In a recent scoping review published in a leading international scientific journal, TRIGG mapped the current evidence on peptides and muscle wasting. A total of 126 studies were analysed, identifying 87 distinct peptides linked to muscle mass, muscle strength and/or physical performance.
The review shows that many of these peptides act on key signalling pathways involved in muscle homeostasis: PI3K/Akt/mTOR, ActR/SMAD, IKK/NF-κB and/or AMPK/PGC1α. At the same time, important limitations in study design, reporting quality and population representativeness were identified, including a marked underrepresentation of females, which hampers clinical translation.
Together, these findings highlight the strong potential of peptides as biomarkers and therapeutic targets in muscle wasting. Future research, using more representative study populations and standardized methodologies, will be crucial to fully unlock this potential.
