Tweaking a Gene Makes Muscles Twice as Strong

Scientists at EPFL, the University of Lausanne and the Salk Institute have been working with a tiny inhibitor that seems to be responsible for how strong and powerful a muscle can be.  They have bred a line of "mighty mice" that had muscles twice as strong as normal mice.  They did this by modulating the transcription of a certain gene by acting on a receptor (NCoR1).  According to genecards.org, "This gene encodes a protein that mediates ligand-independent transcription repression of thyroid-hormone and retinoic-acid receptors by promoting chromatin condensation and preventing access of the transcription machinery."  In their experiments, they were able to inhibit the NCoR1 compressor who's job, normally, is to inhibit the buildup of muscle tissues.  This inhibition allowed for the tissue to develop much more effectively making the mice "true marathoners, capable of runny faster and longer without showing signs of fatigue".