Add one more benefit to exercise: it changes DNA in skeletal muscle cells and helps to reduce the chance of disease, according to a recent study from the University of Copenhagen featured in the journal Molecular Metabolism.
The study found that endurance exercise rewires the epigenetic information of skeletal muscle cells in the genome linked to disease. New signals are created through this process, helping to lower the risk for disease, according to the study, which was performed on men during a six-week endurance exercise program.
By taking a biopsy of each subject’s thigh muscle before and after the program, the researchers determined that the structure had changed in many of the enhancers in the skeletal muscle. Many of the regulated enhancers previously have been determined to be hotspots associated with disease.
In addition, exercise may improve organs, such as the brain, which could lead to exercises in the future that target the brain.