Marathon runners use brain cell insulation as an energy source for the race
Marathon runners use brain cell insulation as an energy source for the race
A greasy substance that isolated the electrical signals that are transmitted by nerve cells could also be an energy source for the brain - especially if the reserves are running out. This fascinating possibility was shown by scans of the brains of long -distance runners who were approved before and after the marathon.
The scans indicate that the values of the insulating substance-called Nature.com/scitible/topicpage/myelin-a-specialized-Membrane-for-cell-communication-14367205/" Data-Track " Data-label = "https://www.nature.com/scitible/topicpage/myelin-a-pecialized-Membrane-for-cell-communication-14367205/" Data-Track-Category = "Body Text Link"-In brain regions that are for motor control and Emotional processing are responsible for sank after the strenuous events, only to return to normal values within two months of the races.
Although the idea that Myelin acts as an energy source is not entirely new, nobody had thought of examining this with runners, says Carlos Matute, a marathon runner and neuroscientist at the University of the Basque Country in Leioa, Spain, which was led by the study that was published in Nature Metabolism today 1 . "These results open up the possibility that myelin lipids contribute to the energy processing of the brain, at least under certain conditions."
The temporary loss of Myelin after a race should not cause worries from the runner's point of view, adds Matute. His team is currently conducting studies to investigate whether the reduction of Myelin has a temporary impact on cognitive function, and so far there have been no results that indicate significant effects, which indicates that the effect is either very small or not available. "There are no rough changes in brain function," he says. In fact, Matute suspects that the use and filling of Myelin is advantageous because it trains the "metabolic machines" of the brain.
Mustapha Bauuhara, who examines at the US National Institutes of Health in Baltimore, Maryland, Brain Scans and Age processes. The acceptance of the myelin only takes a short time and is therefore not worrying, he says, and the process teaches the brain how myelin can quickly repair it and "could be very, very advantageous".
The idea for the study came Matute, who ran 18 marathons, during his training. He wondered how people can manage such demanding races. In view of the abundance of myelin in the brain - it accounts for up to 40 % of the central nervous system by weight - and its fatty composition wondered whether the brain could "strategically" use to continue to function if other energy sources disappear.
his team used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to the Brains of ten runners-eight men and two women-to scan within 48 hours before and after their participation in various marathons in Spain in 2022 and 2023. The authors found that the myelin values in 12 brain regions were significantly lower after the race than before. "It wasn't much, but it was a clear reduction in certain areas of the brain," says Matute.
The areas concerned are responsible for motor coordination, sensory perception and emotions and are regions that would be actively expected during a marathon, explains Matute. "We feel a lot of things while running and often have to motivate ourselves to continue," he adds.
The researchers examined the brains of some of the runners again in the weeks and months after the races. They found that after two weeks there had been a certain “remyelinization” and that the myelin levels were completely restored after two months.
-
Ramos-Cabrer, P. et al. Nature metab. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-01244-7 (2025).
-
Asadollahi, E. et al. Nature Neurosci 27, 1934–1944 (2024).