ArticleJournal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle2018
Building strength, endurance, and mobility using an astaxanthin formulation with functional training in elderly.
Article in Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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
29 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 50 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Effects of Astaxanthin Supplementation on Exercise Recovery Biomarkers and Exercise Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Nutrients · 2026Pooled it
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of antioxidants with or without exercise training improving muscle condition in older adults.Scientific reports · 2025Pooled it
- Prevalence and risk factors of sarcopenia in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in medicine · 2023Pooled it
- Effects of milk fat globule membrane ingestion with exercise on physical strength in healthy young adults: a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2025Trial
- Benefits of Krill Oil Supplementation During Alternate-Day Fasting in Adults With Overweight and Obesity: A Randomized Trial.Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) · 2025Trial
- Randomized crossover clinical trial of coenzyme Q10 and nicotinamide riboside in chronic kidney disease.JCI insight · 2023Trial
- Astaxanthin supplementation enhances metabolic adaptation with aerobic training in the elderly.Physiological reports · 2021Trial
- International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: effects of dietary antioxidants on exercise and sports performance.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2026Review
- Krill Oil for Pain in Elders: protocol for a pilot, double-blind, randomised controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of 4 g/d krill oil supplementation for chronic musculoskeletal pain and mobility limitations in older adults.The British journal of nutrition · 2026Article
- Astaxanthin improves myogenicity of aged skeletal muscle progenitor cells in a sexually dimorphic manner.npj aging · 2026Article
- Nutraceutical Potential of Astaxanthin in Muscle Metabolism, Exercise Adaptation, and Obesity.Nutrients · 2025Review
- Long non-coding RNAs and signaling networks in non-small cell lung cancer: mechanistic insights into tumor pathogenesis.Cancer gene therapy · 2025Review
- Therapeutic Potential of Astaxanthin for Body Weight Regulation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis with Dose-Response Assessment.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Effects of Long-Chain n-3 Fatty Acids Supplementation During Caloric Restriction on Body Composition in Overweight and Obese Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Food science & nutrition · 2025Review
- Effects of 4-week astaxanthin supplementation on athletic performance and body composition in young male taekwondo athletes: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Article
- The Effects of Astaxanthin on Metabolic Syndrome: A Comprehensive Review.Marine drugs · 2024Review
- Mitochondrial Targeted Interventions for Aging.Cold Spring Harbor perspectives in medicine · 2024Review
- Astaxanthin: Past, Present, and Future.Marine drugs · 2023Review
- Cigarette Smoke-Induced Respiratory Response: Insights into Cellular Processes and Biomarkers.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- ATP and NADNutrients · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBuilding both strength and endurance has been a challenge in exercise training in the elderly, but dietary supplements hold promise as agents for improving muscle adaptation. Here, we test a formulation of natural products (AX: astaxanthin, 12 mg and tocotrienol, 10 mg and zinc, 6 mg) with both anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties in combination with exercise. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of elderly subjects (65-82 years) on a daily oral dose with interval walking exercise on an incline treadmill.
methodsForty-two subjects were fed AX or placebo for 4 months and trained 3 months (3×/week for 40-60 min) with increasing intervals of incline walking. Strength was measured as maximal voluntary force (MVC) in ankle dorsiflexion exercise, and tibialis anterior muscle size (cross-sectional area, CSA) was determined from magnetic resonance imaging.
resultsGreater endurance (exercise time in incline walking, >50%) and distance in 6 min walk (>8%) accompanied training in both treatments. Increases in MVC by 14.4% (±6.2%, mean ± SEM, P < 0.02, paired t-test), CSA by 2.7% (±1.0%, P < 0.01), and specific force by 11.6% (MVC/CSA, ±6.0%, P = 0.05) were found with AX treatment, but no change was evident in these properties with placebo treatment (MVC, 2.9% ± 5.6%; CSA, 0.6% ± 1.2%; MVC/CSA, 2.4 ± 5.7%; P > 0.6 for all).
conclusionsThe AX formulation improved muscle strength and CSA in healthy elderly in addition to the elevation in endurance and walking distance found with exercise training alone. Thus, the AX formulation in combination with a functional training programme uniquely improved muscle strength, endurance, and mobility in the elderly.
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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.