Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2017 Jun:34:49-55.
doi: 10.1016/j.coph.2017.05.005. Epub 2017 Jun 9.

Muscle as a paracrine and endocrine organ

Jimena Giudice  1 , Joan M Taylor  2
Affiliations
Review

Muscle as a paracrine and endocrine organ

Jimena Giudice et al. Curr Opin Pharmacol. 2017 Jun.

Abstract

Skeletal muscle cells are highly abundant and metabolically active and are known to 'communicate' their energy demands to other organs through active secretion. Muscle-derived secretory proteins include a variety of cytokines and peptides collectively referred to as 'myokines' that exert autocrine, paracrine or endocrine effects. Analyses of the skeletal muscle secretome revealed that numerous myokines are secreted in response to contraction or strength training, and that these factors not only regulate energy demand but also contribute to the broad beneficial effects of exercise on cardiovascular, metabolic, and mental health. Herein we review recent studies on the myokines that regulate muscle function and those that mediate cross talk between skeletal muscle and other organs including adipose tissue, liver, pancreas, the cardiovascular system, brain, bones, and skin.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest

There are no conflicts of interest

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Skeletal muscle as a paracrine and endocrine organ
Skeletal muscle is one of the largest tissues in the body and myofibers are one of the most metabolically active tissues. Skeletal muscles ‘communicate’ their energy demands to other organs through active release of factors. Muscle-derived secretory proteins include a variety of cytokines and peptides collectively termed “myokines” that exert auto-, para- or endocrine effects.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Hartwig S, Raschke S, Knebel B, Scheler M, Irmler M, Passlack W, Muller S, Hanisch FG, Franz T, Li X, et al. Secretome profiling of primary human skeletal muscle cells. Biochim Biophys Acta. 2014;1844:1011–1017. - PubMed
    1. Le Bihan MC, Bigot A, Jensen SS, Dennis JL, Rogowska-Wrzesinska A, Laine J, Gache V, Furling D, Jensen ON, Voit T, et al. In-depth analysis of the secretome identifies three major independent secretory pathways in differentiating human myoblasts. J Proteomics. 2012;77:344–356. - PubMed
    1. Raschke S, Eckardt K, Bjorklund Holven K, Jensen J, Eckel J. Identification and validation of novel contraction-regulated myokines released from primary human skeletal muscle cells. PLoS One. 2013;8:e62008. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Iizuka K, Machida T, Hirafuji M. Skeletal muscle is an endocrine organ. J Pharmacol Sci. 2014;125:125–131. - PubMed
    1. Walsh K. Adipokines, myokines and cardiovascular disease. Circ J. 2009;73:13–18. - PubMed
-