Muscle failure: the role and mechanisms of energy in skeletal muscle fatigue

As part of the IAS Festival of Failure, IAS Visiting Fellow Professor Niels Ørtenblad delivers a seminar - 

Skeletal muscles have an impressive force and power generating capacity. However, with intense or prolonged activation muscle function is reduced, termed fatigue. Despite a broad interest of the scientific community, fundamental questions remain unsolved about how activation per se is affected by exercise or disuse and how metabolism affects muscle regulation. It is herein remarkable how precise skeletal muscle fibers with a high and fluctuating energy-turnover, balance energy utilization with production, preventing loss of energy and thereby cell integrity. With an integrative approach, i.e. combining data from whole body human experiments, including high level athletes, though to more mechanistic models, I will discuss metabolic factors contributing to impaired force generating capacity. I will particularly focus on the role of muscle glucose stores (glycogen), as we and colleagues in the field, have recently demonstrated that the muscle glycogen, serves as an energy sensor, contributing to muscle function and fatigue.

Arrivals from 9:45 am for a 10:00 am start. For those joining in-person, lunch will be served after the seminar from 1:00pm.

This event is hybrid format, please use the required booking button at the bottom of the page to choose either in-person or online attendance.
(Please note that in-person spaces are limited and booking is required, so we can manage numbers for catering and also the space inside International House)

By booking a place at this event, attendees agree to behave in a respectful manner such that everyone feels comfortable contributing as they wish. The IAS reserves the right to eject anyone who does not abide by this policy.

IAS seminars are typically recorded, minus any Q&A sessions at the end, again to encourage contributions. The recordings are then uploaded to our website on a Fellows bio page and/or Programme page, along with our IAS YouTube Channel. If you are not able to attend a seminar live, please do still register as we will email everyone who registered to let them know once the recordings are made available.