Ergogenic effects of caffeine are mediated by myokines

Shingo Takada; Yoshizuki Fumoto; Shintaro Kinugawa

doi:10.3389/fspor.2022.969623

Ergogenic effects of caffeine are mediated by myokines

Front Sports Act Living. 2022 Dec 8:4:969623. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2022.969623. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Shingo Takada^{1

2}, Yoshizuki Fumoto², Shintaro Kinugawa^{3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Lifelong Sport, School of Sports Education, Hokusho University, Ebetsu, Japan.
² Department of Molecular Biology, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
³ Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.
⁴ Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Research Institute of Angiocardiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.

Abstract

Exercise has long been known to effectively improve and enhance skeletal muscle function and performance. The favorable effects of exercise on remote organs other than skeletal muscle are well known, but the underlying mechanism has remained elusive. Recent studies have indicated that skeletal muscle not only enables body movement, but also contributes to body homeostasis and the systemic stress response via the expression and/or secretion of cytokines (so-called myokines). Not only the induction of muscle contraction itself, but also changes in intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca²⁺]i) have been suggested to be involved in myokine production and secretion. Caffeine is widely known as a Ca²⁺ ionophore, which improves skeletal muscle function and exercise performance (i.e., an "ergogenic aid"). Interestingly, some studies reported that caffeine or an increase in [Ca²⁺]i enhances the expression and/or secretion of myokines. In this review, we discuss the association between caffeine as an ergogenic aid and myokine regulation.

Keywords: BDNF; Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release; calcium ion (Ca)2+; ergogenic aid; exercise mimetic; mitochondria; myokine; skeletal muscle.

Publication types

Review