Researchers at Gangnam Severance Hospital said Monday that they have found ways to predict sarcopenia using alkaline phosphatase (ALP), expecting it would become a new biomarker to predict and prevent muscle loss.   

Sarcopenia or muscle loss weakens bodily functions and causes medical complications like diabetes, obesity, and hyperlipidemia. Loss of muscles and muscle strength in the arms and legs are commonly regarded as common processes of aging.

Recently, however, sarcopenia is found in younger people due to an imbalance in nutrition. Hence, it is officially categorized as a disease. In 2017, sarcopenia obtained a disease code from the World Health Organization. In addition, the Korean Standard Classification of Disease (KCD) also granted a disease code to sarcopenia last January.

The team, led by Professor Lee Yong-jae of the Department of Family Medicine and Professor Cho A-ra of the Department of Infectious Diseases,  announced the research results on the relationship between the increase in serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and muscle loss. ALP is an enzyme found in tissues of the body like the liver, bones, kidneys, and intestine. In general, an increase in ALP is related to the liver, gall bladder, and bones.

From 2008 to 2011, the research team divided about 15,000 participants into three groups by their gender and ALP concentration.

According to the results of multiple logistic regression analysis of low skeletal muscle mass index (LSMI) of the three groups of different genders, it was found that the higher the serum ALP, the higher the risks of muscle loss.

The group with the lowest serum ALP level in males showed 6.4 percent LSMI while the highest ALP level group showed 10.5 percent. The LSMIs of the three female groups were 3.1 percent, 5.7 percent, and 10.9 percent, respectively, indicating the third group that had the highest ALP level showed the highest risk of sarcopenia, according to the hospital.

“When there is muscle loss, the balance of the body collapses with the weakening of muscle strength, declining physical activities and lowering the quality of life,” Professor Lee said. “The research found that the higher the ALP concentration, the higher the dangers of muscle loss. This can be used as the main tool in assessing the functions of the musculoskeletal system in the aged population.”

The research result was published in the latest issue of Biomolecules.