Study record
Repeated Heat Stress Modulates the Levels of the Mitokines MOTS-C and FGF21 in Active Men during Calf Muscle Immobilization
Elhusseiny R, Ihsan M, Labidi M et al. · Med Sci Sports Exerc · 2025
What this study reported
Measured circulating and skeletal muscle mitokine levels in physically active men during ankle immobilization and reported that immobilization itself did not change mitokine levels. Found higher circulating MOTS-c and lower skeletal muscle FGF21 in the repeated heat-treatment group than in the sham group, while immobilization decreased gastrocnemius medialis muscle thickness and cross-sectional area in these participants.
Limitations
Small sample of 19 men with roughly nine or ten per arm; men only and physically active volunteers, limiting generalisability; MOTS-c was a secondary mitokine outcome and the comparison with exercise was not directly tested.
Study record
| Study model | Human observational |
|---|---|
| Substance studied | Endogenous MOTS-c measuredNaturally occurring MOTS-c was measured; nothing was given. |
| Species | human |
| System studied | Physically active young adult men undergoing unilateral ankle immobilization after supervised training |
| Population | physically active men undergoing left-ankle immobilization |
| Design | Randomised heat-stress intervention during limb immobilization; MOTS-c measured |
| Sample size as reported | 19 men (9 heat, 10 sham) |
| Control group | sham treatment group (n = 10) |
| Route (data field only) | Not reported |
| Endpoints measured | circulating MOTS-c; skeletal muscle MOTS-c; circulating and muscle FGF21; muscle thickness; muscle cross-sectional area; anabolism and atrophy markers |
| Pathways measured | Other |
| Research areas | Skeletal muscle · Exercise · Mitochondrial biology |
| Evidence tier | B — Other human study |
| Publication types | Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't |
Appraisal
Each dimension is recorded separately and never combined into a single score. A study can be well controlled and still tell you little about people.
- Relevance to MOTS-c
- Direct
- Model applicability
- Human
- Sample size
- Small
- Controls
- Appropriate
- Outcome validity
- Surrogate
- Support for its own conclusion
- Moderate
Provenance
- Bibliographic fields retrieved from PubMed E-utilities efetch (title, journal, date, authors, DOI) on 2026-11-11.
- Annotated from the published abstract.
- Editorial review: approved (2026-11-11).
- Classification follows the site methodology; the record describes the study, not what MOTS-c does in people.