Irisin and FNDC5: effects of 12-week strength training, and relations to muscle phenotype and body mass composition in untrained women

Purpose: To investigate the effects of strength training on abundances of irisin-related biomarkers in skeletal muscle and blood of untrained young women, and their associations with body mass composition, muscle phenotype and levels of thyroid hormones. Methods: Eighteen untrained women performed 12 weeks of progressive whole-body heavy strength training, with measurement of strength, body composition, expression of irisin-related genes (FNDC5 and PGC1α) in two different skeletal muscles, and levels of serum-irisin and -thyroid hormones, before and after the training intervention. Results: The strength training intervention did not result in changes in serum-irisin or muscle FNDC5 expression, despite considerable effects on strength, lean body mass (LBM) and skeletal muscle phenotype. Our data indicate that training affects irisin biology in a LBM-dependent manner. However, no association was found between steady-state serum-irisin or training-associated changes in serum-irisin and alterations in body composition. FNDC5 expression was higher in m.Biceps brachii than in m.Vastus lateralis, with individual expression levels being closely correlated, suggesting a systemic mode of transcriptional regulation. In pre-biopsies, FNDC5 expression was correlated with proportions of aerobic muscle fibers, a relationship that disappeared in post-biopsies. No association was found between serum-thyroid hormones and FNDC5 expression or serum-irisin. Conclusion: No evidence was found for an effect of strength training on irisin biology in untrained women, though indications were found for a complex interrelationship between irisin, body mass composition and muscle phenotype. FNDC5 expression was closely associated with muscle fiber composition in untrained muscle