MGF (Mechano Growth Factor) is a splice variant of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1). Research reveals it to have positive effects on tissue growth, wound healing, cardiac repair, and skeletal muscle repair. There is good evidence to indicate that MGF improves muscle repair following injury and boosts recovery times following exercise or injury.
Overview
Scientists have known about alternative splicing for some time now. The process refers to the ability of a cell to create mRNA strands in different ways to produce a wide variety of proteins from the same basic DNA sequence. IGF-1 turns out to be on the extreme end of alternative splicing. With six exons and multiple transcription sites, IGF-1 can be spliced into two classes consisting of three major isoforms each (IGF-1Ea, IGF-1Eb, IGF-1Ec) for a total of at least six different proteins. These peptides can then be further modified to produce an even wider variety of alternatives
Research
As it turns out, the specific versions of IGF-1 that are produced depends on a number of factors. Age, steroid hormones, growth hormone, and other developmental cues all affect how IGF-1 is spliced and the final peptides that are produced. Age, in particular, has been found to have major influence on the expression of IGF-1 isoforms. Young men show now preference between class 1 and class 2 isoforms whereas older men show a statistically and physiologically significant shift toward class 1Ea[2]. The overall significance of this change in terms of obvious signs of aging isn’t clear, but it offers an experimental starting point for understanding better the aging process. There is some thought that MGF supplementation may be able to offset the muscle-diminishing effects associated with aging, though more research is required in this area.
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