ICYMI: ONLINE NOW: Science captured by storytelling: the oxidative stress narrative

Is “oxidative stress” a useful concept in biology and medicine? In this work, led by Nikos, we argue that the term “oxidative stress” is devoid of biological meaning and, even worse, misleading.

Meta-research in muscle science: an audacious study shows glycerol storage, used for >60 years, makes fibers stiffer. Other biochemical effects? An important finding that may force a reexamination of past studies and influence the design of new ones. rupress.org/jgp/article/...

How much researchers truly believe what they are saying (from most to least): 1. Conference chat after some beers 2. Conference presentation 3. Paper (first draft) 4. Paper (published) 5. Grant proposal 6. Interview to media 😅

My understanding is that increases in blood reactive species or ox. stress markers cannot, predominantly, originate from ox. stress in tissues, since neither reactive species nor ox. stress products generated in cells have been shown to exit tissues & contribute to blood levels.

A fresh perspective on hydrogen peroxide metabolism during exercise. In vivo (normoxic), muscle contractions typically cause only minimal increases in H₂O₂ (<10%), whereas in vitro (hyperoxic) assays often show far greater increases (~150–340%). sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Erythrocyte glutathione synthesis peaks at ~1.0 g protein/kg/day in young & old individuals, even though glutathione concentrations remain unchanged. Additional protein offers no benefit for those with "normal" glutathione levels. ajcn.nutrition.org/article/S000... ajcn.nutrition.org/article/S000...

Much of the joy of computational papers lies in how they bring scattered insights together. Even if you don’t model, this one helps experimentalists design better studies by clarifying how training stresses drive specific adaptations across energy systems. arxiv.org/abs/2503.14841

Vitamin C+E supplementation blunts molecular adaptations to sprint interval training but not performance gains. Since performance wasn’t impaired, I wonder whether, and to what extent, the blunted molecular responses can truly be considered detrimental physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1113/...

James Imlay turns redox chaos into clockwork: his new paper shows how membrane permeability sets the tempo of oxidative stress, with straight-up back-of-the-envelope math in the appendix. Fundamental, elegant, causal. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Despite the challenges, this well-conducted study found that chronic Theracurmin—a bioavailable curcumin extract—supplementation neither enhanced nor impaired muscle hypertrophy in mice, but simply modulated some inflammatory and oxidative stress markers. journals.humankinetics.com/view/journal...

Eur J Appl Physiol now welcomes reviews from all thinkers—whether or not they identify as physiologists. A great review is not about labels but about curiosity, depth & synthesis. Young scientists, your fresh takes are especially invited. More in my editorial: link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Study shows that chronic antioxidant supplementation (VitC+VitE) blunted molecular adaptations to training, yet, no impact on any measure of exercise performance—considering that "antioxidant" is a vague term and that VitC+VitE may not always act as such. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Important study highlighting plausible molecular links between redox metabolism and exercise performance—an area notoriously difficult to dissect. The findings challenge assumptions that G6PD deficiency decreases exercise performance. A human replication study would be invaluable.

Our contribution to the Special Issue "Unlocking Athletic Potential: Exploring Exercise Physiology from Mechanisms to Performance" in FRBM, Guest-edited by Prof. Gomez-Cabrera & @c-handschin.bsky.social #redox #supplements #sports #evidence

A special issue on Exercise Physiology and Redox Biology, with bridges built along the way. Thanks for the kind invitation.

If you are measuring total protein content in skeletal muscle and wondering about the origin of the often-cited 'holy number'—that ~20% of muscle is protein—a recent detailed study provides support for it, reporting a value of 17.7%. journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10....

I believe that a great issue stemming from the undeniable ergogenic potential of carbohydrates and creatine is the misconception that increasing any 'good' molecule in our body will automatically enhance exercise performance—and the reverse.

Remarkable study in mice provides invaluable insights but occasionally falls into the pitfall of overcomparing its findings to human studies, despite being unfeasible in humans. Plus a nuanced review of exercise metabolism, rich with intricacies for researchers. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Different concentrations of the reactive nitrogen species (RONS) nitrate and nitrite in trained vs untrained and healthy vs diseased groups, pointing to significant physiological implications.

A list of (exercise) skeletal muscle researchers in Bluesky

Free radicals and antioxidants: appealing to magic Our short paper argues that molecules cannot be classified as good or evil. Limited evidence supporting the consumption of antioxidants or superfoods and such interventions risk disrupting fundamental redox processes. www.cell.com/trends/endoc...

A list of redox biology researchers in Bluesky

Sabine Hossenfelder and Professor Dave Explains are, in my view, both serious and thoughtful science communicators. Recently, Sabine shared her perspective on why academia is failing: www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKiB...

Impressive paper by Rob Phillips exploring physical biology through a historical lens: www.cell.com/current-biol...