A recent study has highlighted the potential of the antiviral drug maraviroc as a treatment for sarcopenia, an age-related muscle deterioration disease.

In aged mice, maraviroc treatment resulted in significant improvements, including increased muscle mass, larger fiber size, and enhanced overall function such as better grip strength and running performance.

The study also created an atlas of senescent cells in skeletal muscle, revealing that aged muscle contains a higher prevalence of these cells and exhibits a distinct senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) compared to younger muscle.

Researchers examined skeletal muscle tissue from both young and aged donors, uncovering notable differences in the presence of senescent cells and muscle stem cell populations between the two age groups.

Specific transcription factors, particularly ATF3 and JUNB, were identified as key regulators of senescence and SASP induction in muscle cells, with JUNB linked to increased SASP production in aged muscle stem cells.

The findings of this study encourage future research to explore additional senolytic or senomorphic compounds that target unique features of senescent cells, aiming to further address sarcopenia in humans.