Old Age and Muscular State

[brewer]

Hello, I am a new member here, so beware! Anyway, I'd like to discuss this article:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24360282
(Dear mods, I promise pubmed is legitimate, haha)

Anyway the implication of this article is that simple injectons of NAD+, or perhaps even niacin in some cases, would allowed aged musculature to preform in a matter similar to young adult, which is absolutely astounding to me, since, if niacin is efficacious, then the treatment would be fairly cheap, and allow a quality of life in the elderly previously unseen. Anyway, to the points of discussion: first, has anyone heard of any follow-up on this article, clinical trials, etc., second, the implications of this treatment if it translates to humans. The first point I don't actually expect many answers on, unless someone gets bored, and decides to be a google detective/still has access to journal search engines. The second point actually the point I expect to discuss. Would this treatment potentially affect the retirement age, seeing that the infirmity of old age is no longer? Will it give way to newer disorders? Will it actually promote death in the elderly since this has no impact on the mind, from the promotion of more dangerous activity? I'm just providing food for thought and trying to incite conversation, by no means do I feel this is some inherent slippery slope. If anyone needs any background info on the theory of aging musculature, let me know and I'll edit my post with a summary. Thanks ahead of time!

Injection (or oral for niacin/nicotinamide/... and its cohorts) would increase extracellular concentrations, not necessarily intracellular. High doses of oral niacin et al have been taken for years. I'd think that even anecdotal evidence would have been reported if there was an observable change in muscle function. If high intracellular concentrations are achieved, how will that effect the homeostasis of the cell? Will the cell simply metabolize the excess leaving no net gain? Additional reading:

http://molpharm.aspetjournals.org/conten.../1136.full

http://www.jbc.org/content/283/10/6367.full

http://www.life-enhancement.com/magazine...-nad-world

http://cshperspectives.cshlp.org/content...13102.full