{
  "id": 10372016,
  "title": "DEPP1 connects nutrient and oxygen availability to maintenance of muscle mass",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/27/depp1-connects-nutrient-and-oxygen-availability-to-maintenance-of",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-27T00:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "bioRxiv",
    "slug": "biorxiv",
    "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.21.753276v1?rss=1"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new study has uncovered a crucial link between nutrient and oxygen availability in maintaining muscle mass. When either of these vital resources is limited, it triggers muscle atrophy, or wasting. Researchers previously understood that nutrient scarcity activates a set of genes called atrogenes through the Forkhead box O (FoxO) transcription factors, but the role of low oxygen in muscle loss had remained enigmatic. This research sheds light on the underlying mechanisms by identifying Hypoxia Inducible Factor (HIF) as the master regulator responsible for inducing muscle loss in mice under hypoxic conditions. By examining skeletal muscle tissue from mice subjected to fasting or low oxygen, scientists discovered a protein called Decidual Protein Induced by Progesterone 1 (Depp1). Depp1 is activated through FoxO1 and HIF activation when nutrients or oxygen is scarce. Deleting Depp1 from whole bodies of mice reduced muscle atrophy brought on by both fasting and hypoxia, while overexpressing Depp1 in skeletal muscle induced muscle wasting. The researchers found that Depp1 congregates within the mitochondria and plays a pivotal role in modulating autophagy activation and mitochondrial degradation within skeletal muscle. Overall, these findings position Depp1 as a novel atrogene essential for muscle loss under various atrophy-inducing situations involving both FoxO and HIF pathways.",
  "summary": "Nutrients and oxygen are sensed within the muscle to control growth and disruption of either signal is sufficient to lead to muscle atrophy. While nutrient limitation is sensed via a conserved transcriptional atrophy program (commonly referred to as atrogenes) dictated via the Forkhead box O (FoxO) transcription factors, how low oxygen promotes muscle loss remains unknown. Accordingly, the…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}