Daily drug patches improved grip strength in aged mice
In a 20-day experiment, daily microneedle patches increased grip strength and muscle fiber size compared with untreated aged mice.
Limit: Different patch and injection doses complicate comparisons between delivery methods
Stake: An author works for Anodyne Nanotech.
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
A randomized, controlled experiment in aged mice tested patches with tiny needles carrying Pyr-Apelin-13, a short chain of protein building blocks. Researchers compared daily or weekly patches with daily or weekly injections and no treatment over 20 days. Daily patches carried 0.38 milligrams and delivered an average of 0.32 milligrams per application.
Daily patches increased grip strength, adjusted for body weight, and average muscle fiber size compared with untreated controls. These outcomes were comparable to daily injections. Weekly patches did not produce statistically significant improvements over controls in grip strength or muscle fiber size. Daily patches did not measurably increase whole-muscle weight. After patch removal, researchers saw puncture marks but no obvious skin redness.
Why it matters
Sarcopenia, the age-associated loss of muscle mass and function, lacks effective drug treatments. The authors propose the patch as a delivery platform for peptide-based medicines for this condition.
Caveats
Patch and injection doses differed, and researchers did not measure blood drug levels. This short experiment in aged mice did not establish benefits in people.
The paper
Anodyne Biotech; Anodyne Nanotech
Scientific Reports, Jun 8, 2026, Open access
