Michelle Dickinson: nanotechnologist on the molecule that could be used to create an 'exercise pill'

We’ve all heard that regular exercise is good for you. But a major new study published in Cell might have just found a way to bottle its benefits and deliver them to people who can’t hit the gym.

Over six years, the researchers tracked 13 healthy volunteers as they exercised, from a single 5km run to a 25-day running plan and they collected as much data as they could across the body including genes, proteins, metabolism, gut bacteria, and immune cells. 

They found that at first, exercise stresses the body out with inflammation and metabolic overload. But over time, the body adapts and rebuilds, emerging stronger and more balanced. 

Surprisingly they found that your kidneys play a leading role in how your body responds to exercise.  

Betaine is a natural molecule made by the kidneys, as a powerful 'exercise mimetic' something that can copy many of the health benefits of physical activity, especially when it comes to slowing down aging.  

The researchers gave betaine supplements to aging mice and found that : 

• Their immune cells looked and acted younger.
• Inflammation dropped significantly.
• Physical coordination and memory improved.
• Even signs of depression faded.

All without the mice needing to exercise. 

Betaine works by blocking a key inflammation switch in the body (called TBK1). This shuts down the chronic 'inflammaging' the slow, inflammation that drives many age-related diseases. 

This discovery doesn’t mean you should stop moving, exercise still offers a whole package of benefits that pills can’t fully replicate. But for people who are older, injured, or living with disabilities, this research could lead to real, science-backed alternatives. 

Betaine is already known to be safe, and the researchers believe it has strong potential as a geroprotective supplement  one that could help people stay healthier, longer. 

Future clinical trials will tell us if these effects hold true in humans at scale. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News talks 'b.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Doctor Michelle Dickinson joins us now, good morning, good morning, Okay.
Science study of the week is a really interesting one
which I think would be used for good but also
very lazy people tell me about that.

Speaker 3 (00:27):
So the Scientists is a new study published in the
journal Cell and they basically had these scientists who studied
for six years people thirteen healthy volunteers, and they made
them exercise for six years straight basically. And during this
time they put them through different exercise programs and they
really tracked their bodies and what their bodies were doing.

(00:47):
Usually when you look at exercise studies, they're looking at
things like, you know, metabolism or heart rate or like
things to do with physical activity. But in this study,
it was really detailed. They collected data on their genes,
did their genes change, proteins and metabolism, did their gut
bacteria change, did any of their immune cells change?

Speaker 1 (01:04):
Like?

Speaker 3 (01:04):
It was a very detailed, high data study. And what
they found is what we know, which is when you
start exercising, it totally stresses your body out. So your
inflammation happens, you get metabotic overload, and it's why you
feel when you start exerising. This why you feel like
you're dyingcause your body is shutting down. But if you
continue exercising, your body learns to recover and it adapts

(01:26):
and it can build and it emerges stronger and more balance.
And we know that exercise can help us fight the
signs of aging. And that's not just the physical signs
of aging by building muscle, but also the cellular signs
of aging. So as they're studying this are like, what
is the thing, Like, where does the exercise benefit come from? Like,
we know exercise is good for you, but what's what's happening.

(01:47):
What they found, surprisingly is the command center for your
exercise benefit is actually in your kidneys. Now this is
not what they're expecting, but your kidneys actually release something
called betaane and btane. They found blocks a key inflammation switch.
It's called TBK one, and that this natural molecule which

(02:10):
is produced by our kidneys is a powerful exercise mimetic.
So what they found is the more you exercise, the
more beating you're producing. And they're like, this beating's weird.
Let's look at it. And so they said, well, let's
take this betine molecule and feed it to rats before
we feed it to humans and see what's going on.
So they put it into rats. And these rats are
sedentary rats. Some of them are depressed because they're in

(02:31):
a cage with nothing to do. And they found when
they gave them these betane supplements number one, their immune
cells looked and acted younger, their inflammation dropped significantly, their
physical coordination they were much more coordinated. And I don't
know how you measure this in rats, but their depression
signs faded. Basically all of the benefits of exercise they

(02:51):
were able to show physically and mentally just by giving
these mice betane. And then they went, hold on, Bataane
is the thing here that is helping people. The benefits
of exercise are coming from this molecule called beatane. Now,
not all of the benefits obviously, like increasing muscle mass
and those things that you get from lifting weights, obviously not,
but some of the cellular benefits, the anti aging benefits

(03:14):
you get from exercise, you can get from this molecule.
And what's cool is this molecule we already know it's
FDA approved and is safe in humans because it's been
a proof for other enzyme challenges, so they've gone cool.
Next study is we're going to put it into humans
and see if you can get all of the benefits
of exercising in a pill. Not for lazy people. I
know you're also down the couch, go yeah, great, i'd

(03:36):
after you're to do. But for people who maybe can't exercise,
so you've got an injury if you're bed ridden, and
we know that if you are bed ridden you've got
huge challenges around some of the effects. Can we now
give you a pill? So basically exercising in a pill.
Thanks to these lovely people who basically ran for six years,
the study could happen.

Speaker 2 (03:54):
It's wonderful. Thank you so much. Can we read the
study Cell the journal Cell brilliant. Thank you so much, Michelle.

Speaker 1 (03:59):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudken, listen
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