Irisin - a myth rather than an exercise-inducible myokine.
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.
Type
Journal articleSubject
AnimalsArtifacts
Blood Chemical Analysis
Cytokines
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Exercise
Fibronectins
Humans
Mice
Muscle, Skeletal
Reproducibility of Results
Sensitivity and Specificity
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https://hdl.handle.net/10161/9501Published Version (Please cite this version)
10.1038/srep08889Publication Info
Albrecht, E; Norheim, F; Thiede, B; Holen, T; Ohashi, T; Schering, L; ... Maak, S (2015). Irisin - a myth rather than an exercise-inducible myokine. Sci Rep, 5. pp. 8889. 10.1038/srep08889. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/9501.This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this
article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.
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Show full item recordScholars@Duke
Harold Paul Erickson
James B. Duke Distinguished Professor Emeritus
Recent research has been on cytoskeleton (eukaryotes and bacteria); a skirmish to
debunk the irisin story; a reinterpretation of proposed multivalent binders of the
coronavirus spike protein. I have also published an ebook on "Principles of Protein-Protein
Association" suitable for a course module or individual learning.
Tomoo Ohashi
Assistant Research Professor of Cell Biology
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