Martha Belury
Ohio State University, OH·Medicine & Clinical Research
As people age, many lose muscle mass and strength. This condition, sarcopenia, raises the risk of illness, disability and death, and adds to healthcare costs.
- Fields
Medicine & Clinical Research
Physiology
Biochemistry
- Topics
sarcopenia
aging
skeletal muscle
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through May 2028
What they work on
- Test whether daily supplementation with linoleic acid-rich vegetable oil improves muscle strength and physical mobility in older adults with probable sarcopenia, in a double-blind randomized controlled trial.
- Measure whether linoleic acid-rich oil raises 4-LA-cardiolipin, a key fat in the inner mitochondrial membrane, in older adults with sarcopenia.
- Determine whether linoleic acid-rich oil supplementation improves mitochondrial respiration and function, linking dietary linoleic acid to mitochondrial capacity in aging muscle.
More about the research
Apart from exercise, there are few lifestyle options to slow it. One shared link between aging and muscle loss is poorly working mitochondria, the parts of the cell that produce energy. This project asks whether a simple dietary change could support mitochondria and help older muscles.
Why it matters
Sarcopenia can lead to immobility and loss of independence in older adults. If a small daily serving of LA-rich vegetable oil improves strength and mobility, it could offer a simple, low-cost dietary approach. A confirmed link between linoleic acid and mitochondria could also guide therapies for other age-related conditions tied to mitochondria, such as central obesity, insulin resistance and dyslipidemia.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Julia Boster
University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus, CO·Medicine & Clinical Research·Early-career
Measure mitochondrial respiration, reactive oxygen species production and oxidative stress in abdominal muscle from children with chronic cholestasis, using Oroboros O2k respirometry, and relate them to sarcopenia.
Stephanie Caligiuri
William & Mary, VA·Physiology
Test whether eating flaxseed muffins daily for six weeks lowers allostatic load in young adults, measured by cortisol, melatonin, BDNF, reactive oxygen species and mitochondrial activity, compared with control muffins in a double-blind trial.
Christiaan Leeuwenburgh
University of Florida, FL·Physiology
Follow low- and high-functioning adults aged 70–80 for 3 years to test whether higher blood hepcidin, an iron-controlling hormone, and muscle iron buildup predict faster decline on the SPPB, 6-minute walk and strength tests.
The school
Ohio State University: 71 labs on PI Pages, $1.6B a year on research, 882 research doctorates a year.
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