ArticleScientific reports2015
Irisin - a myth rather than an exercise-inducible myokine.
Article in Scientific reports, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 177 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
177 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 324 citations in OpenAlex.
- A systematic review of molecular signaling in the muscle-brain-gut axis: exercise-induced myokines and microbial metabolites as key mediators.Molecular biology reports · 2026Pooled it
- The Association Between Chemerin Levels and Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Pooled it
- Effect of Chronic Resistance Training on Circulating Irisin: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- Reduced serum Irisin levels in systemic sclerosis: a cross-sectional case-control study.Clinical rheumatology · 2026Article
- Exerkine-Mediated Inter-Organ Crosstalk and Translational Perspectives in Metabolic Diseases.Current obesity reports · 2026Review
- Irisin in Cartilage Homeostasis: Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutic Implications for Osteoarthritis.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Review
- Sex specific effects of irisin on the skeleton.Bone research · 2026Review
- Review
- Diagnosing and Treating Periodontitis and Multimorbidity Altogether: The Case Example of the Physical Exercise Hormone Irisin.Journal of periodontal research · 2026Article
- The Myokine Irisin Represents an Indirect Pathway Linking Exercise to Hippocampal Subfields Relevant to Alzheimer's Disease and Neurogenesis.Aging cell · 2026Article
- Protective effects of irisin in sarcopenia: a promising treatment.Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2026Review
- Beyond glycemia: adropin, asprosin, and irisin as potential biomarkers for cardiovascular risk in diabetes and prediabetes.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Cross-Platform Transcriptomic Analysis of 40 Human and Rodent Skeletal Muscle Exerkines.Muscles (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Association of Circulating Irisin with Insulin Resistance and Metabolic Risk Markers in Prediabetic and Newly Diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes Patients.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Irisin as a Neuroprotective Agent in Parkinson's Disease: The Role of Physical Exercise in Modulating Dopaminergic Neurons.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Intermittent AP-1 activation in muscles contributes to exercise-induced health benefits.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Association between vitamin D status and circulating myokines (irisin, myostatin, and myonectin) in children: A cross-sectional study.PloS one · 2026Article
- Cold exposure and human metabolism: A heterogeneous response across tissues and organs.Temperature (Austin, Tex.) · 2026Review
- Molecular insights into irisin's role in the regulation of programmed cell death: mechanisms and therapeutic potential.Journal of molecular medicine (Berlin, Germany) · 2025Review
- Diagnostic and Therapeutic Value of the Exercise-Induced Myokine Irisin in Cancer Biology: A Comprehensive Review.Diseases (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
117 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
Abstract
The myokine irisin is supposed to be cleaved from a transmembrane precursor, FNDC5 (fibronectin type III domain containing 5), and to mediate beneficial effects of exercise on human metabolism. However, evidence for irisin circulating in blood is largely based on commercial ELISA kits which are based on polyclonal antibodies (pAbs) not previously tested for cross-reacting serum proteins. We have analyzed four commercial pAbs by Western blotting, which revealed prominent cross-reactivity with non-specific proteins in human and animal sera. Using recombinant glycosylated and non-glycosylated irisin as positive controls, we found no immune-reactive bands of the expected size in any biological samples. A FNDC5 signature was identified at ~20 kDa by mass spectrometry in human serum but was not detected by the commercial pAbs tested. Our results call into question all previous data obtained with commercial ELISA kits for irisin, and provide evidence against a physiological role for irisin in humans and other species.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.