Bed rest, a ground-based spaceflight analog, induces robust atrophy of skeletal muscle, an
effect that is exacerbated with increasing age. We examined the effect of 14 days of bed rest
on skeletal muscle satellite cell content and fiber type atrophy in middle-aged adults, an
understudied age demographic with few overt signs of muscle aging that is representative of
astronauts who perform long-duration spaceflight. Muscle biopsies were obtained from the
vastus lateralis of healthy middle-aged adults [n= 7 (4 male, 3 female); age: 51±1 yr] before …

We examined the effect of 14 days of bed rest on skeletal muscle satellite cell content and
fiber type atrophy and in middle‐aged adults. Bed rest, a ground‐based space flight analog,
induces robust atrophy of skeletal muscle, an effect that is exacerbated with increasing age.
With the average age of astronauts increasing, we wanted to determine the mechanistic
changes during bed rest on an understudied age‐cohort. Muscle biopsies were obtained
from the vastus lateralis of healthy middle‐aged adults (n= 7 [4M; 3F]; age: 51.0±0.6 y) …