AsianScientist (Jul. 23, 2026) – Our muscles do more than help us move, they also release molecules that can regulate other processes in the body. Some of these molecules can even inhibit cancer growth. A recent study published in Nature Communications found that the tumour-suppressing abilities of muscles decline with age, but this effect may be restored with exercise.
As we age, our muscles tend to get weaker, a process that is particularly evident in sarcopenia, an ageing-related condition characterised by a loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength. It is also associated with increased incidence and mortality of some cancers.
Scientists at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore General Hospital and Cardiff University collaborated to investigate this association between ageing muscles and cancer in fruit fly and mouse models.
They found that sarcopenic muscle secreted fewer extracellular vesicles – small packages carrying various biological molecules that cells release to communicate with each other.
Vesicles from ageing muscle also carried different cargo compared to younger muscles. Among other molecules, extracellular vesicles secreted by muscle cells contain miR-7a-5p – a microRNA that can help to restrain tumour growth. Vesicles from ageing muscle contained lower levels of miR-7a-5p, which likely contributes to the loss of tumour suppressive ability in sarcopenic muscles.
“Muscle cells use extracellular vesicles to send messages and influence how other cells behave, but exactly how these messages are delivered and received is not fully understood. Our research uncovers this hidden process, showing that as muscles weaken with age, these signals can change in ways that can promote tumour growth,” said senior author Assistant Professor Tan Hong-Wen, from the Cancer & Stem Cell Biology Signature Research Programme at Duke-NUS Medical School.
The researchers also identified the pathway that regulates the release of extracellular vesicles. Although this pathway declines with age, exercise interventions with mouse models reactivated it, suggesting that exercise may help ageing muscles retain their anti-tumour abilities.
“We observe that healthy muscles secrete many physiologically important molecules. With advanced age, it is even more important to engage in regular resistance and aerobic exercises in order to maintain healthy muscle volume. This is important not only for function and mobility, but also for general health,” said study author Dr Kenon Chua, Consultant at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Singapore General Hospital. “We hope that the insights from our research can help us develop new targeted therapies for our patients; as well as convince more people of the benefits of regular exercise.”
“This study opens new avenues for therapeutic strategies to preserve muscle health and reduce cancer risk, while also underscoring the importance of physical activity in ageing. We hope that policymakers in Singapore and across the region will use this evidence to support greater investment in healthy ageing programmes and exercise-based interventions,” said Professor Lok Shee Mei, Interim Vice-Dean for Research at Duke-NUS Medical School.
The researchers plan to test their findings in human samples next, and investigate if extracellular vesicles and miR-7a-5p could be used as a biomarker to assess cancer risk in sarcopenia patients.
Future research could also investigate other molecules carried by muscle-derived extracellular vesicles from muscles to determine if they have anti-tumour abilities that contribute to the link between sarcopenia and cancer.
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Source: Duke-NUS Medical School; Image: magnific/wisdom
This article can be found at: Sarcopenia promotes tumorigenesis by disrupting NOTCH-SDC2-regulated biogenesis of muscle-derived extracellular vesicles
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