{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,9]],"date-time":"2026-10-09T05:44:18Z","timestamp":1791524658189,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":43,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,30]],"date-time":"2026-03-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1774828800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China\n              https:\/\/ror.org\/01h0zpd94","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["32272237"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["32272237"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100012166","name":"National Key Research and Development Program of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2024YFD2100201-04"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2024YFD2100201-04"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100012166","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Foods"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Sarcopenia is a degenerative condition that imposes a substantial global public health burden, yet safe and effective interventions remain limited. Nutritional support is regarded as an important strategy to mitigate age-related muscle loss and improve physical function in older adults. Due to time and cost constraints, dexamethasone (DEX)-treated models are often used as an alternative to age-related sarcopenia models. This study investigated the effects of pumpkin seed protein peptides (PSPP) and vitamin D on DEX-treated mice. In vitro, PSPP attenuated senescence-associated phenotypes, reduced cellular injury, and partially alleviated DEX-treated myofibrillar atrophy, as evidenced by decreased Atrogin-1 and MuRF1 expression and increased MyoD expression. In vivo, PSPP and vitamin D, particularly in combination, ameliorated DEX-treated declines in muscle mass, grip strength, and endurance. Histological analyses further demonstrated improvements in myofibrillar architecture and muscle fiber cross-sectional area. In addition, each intervention was associated with increased ATP content, elevated interleukin-10 and insulin-like growth factor-1 levels, and reduced tumor necrosis factor-\u03b1 and malondialdehyde levels. Collectively, these findings suggest that PSPP, either alone or combined with vitamin D, may alleviate DEX-treated sarcopenia, potentially through the modulation of mitochondrial homeostasis, attenuation of oxidative stress and inflammatory responses, and promotion of myogenic regeneration.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/foods15071162","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,30]],"date-time":"2026-03-30T13:40:52Z","timestamp":1774878052000},"page":"1162","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Ameliorative Effects of Pumpkin Seed Protein Peptides on Dexamethasone-Treated Sarcopenia and Their Effects When Combined with Vitamin D"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Donghui","family":"Ma","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China"},{"name":"China National Engineering Research Center for Fruit & Vegetable Processing, Beijing 100083, China"},{"name":"CAU-SCCD Advanced Agricultural & Industrial Institute, Chengdu 611400, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yuxin","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China"},{"name":"China National Engineering Research Center for Fruit & Vegetable Processing, Beijing 100083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5681-6058","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jing","family":"Zhao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China"},{"name":"China National Engineering Research Center for Fruit & Vegetable Processing, Beijing 100083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Quanhong","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China"},{"name":"China National Engineering Research Center for Fruit & Vegetable Processing, Beijing 100083, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3","DOI":"10.1002\/jcsm.12238","article-title":"Skeletal muscle performance and ageing","volume":"9","author":"Tieland","year":"2018","journal-title":"J. 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