Terry Bradley, a URI professor of fisheries and aquaculture, said his research into the inhibition of myostatin, a protein that slows muscle growth, has obtained "stunning results" in the last two years, with trout growing 15 to 20 percent more muscle mass than standard fish. According to Bradley, the number of muscle fibers in mammals is limited after birth, but in fish, muscle fiber numbers increase throughout their lifespan. Since inhibition of myostatin increases the numbers of muscle fibers, it had been a mystery as to whether inhibiting myostatin would cause an increase in muscle growth in fish. The results also allow for comparisons between the mechanisms of growth of muscle in mammals versus fish, and it could shed light on muscle wasting diseases in humans. Assuming Bradley’s transgenic fish meet with regulatory approval, it could provide a boost to the industry by enabling aquaculturists to grow larger fish without increasing the amount of food the fish are fed. read more
[Tags]fish, muscle, growth, trout, bradley, myostatin, weight loss news[/Tags]
