Muscle-Bound Boy Offers Hope for Humans

[Guest guest]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10196-2004Jun27.html

Scientists Work to Isolate Secrets of a Genetic Mutation That Could

Alleviate Weakness Accompanying Disease and Aging ...

.... Today, the 4 1/2-year-old is extraordinarily strong: Most children his

age can lift about one pound with each arm -- he can hold a 6.6-pound

dumbbell aloft with each outstretched hand....

At least one drug company, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, has begun preliminary

testing of a drug designed to mimic the effects of the defective gene as a

possible treatment for the most common form of muscular dystrophy, a

devastating muscle disease that primarily afflicts boys.

At the same time, the discovery is raising concerns that athletes and

body-builders will try to exploit the discovery to enhance their abilities,

and some companies are already marketing products that claim to use the

approach. ...

The gene's instructions direct muscle cells to produce a protein known as

myostatin, which regulates the growth of new muscle. When the gene is

deactivated, muscles grow unusually large. ...

Several dietary supplements are already on the market that claim to affect

myostatin and help build muscles. None, however, has been shown to work, Lee

said, adding that he was concerned that if drugs become available that

affect myostatin, they could be subject to abuse. ...