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New publication in Science from the Bernard lab with former and current Cell Biology graduate students Emilie Br没l茅 and Hailey Schultz
Published: 20 March 2025
Myostatin is a paracrine myokine that regulates muscle mass in a variety of species, including humans. In this work, they report a functional role for myostatin as an endocrine hormone that directly promotes pituitary follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) synthesis and thereby ovarian function in mice. Previously, this FSH-stimulating role was attributed to other members of the transforming growth factor-尾 family, the activins. Their results both challenge activin's eponymous role in FSH synthesis and establish an unexpected endocrine axis between skeletal muscle and the pituitary gland. Their data also suggest that efforts to antagonize myostatin to increase muscle mass may have unintended consequences on fertility.
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