Evidence mapPaperPMID 40506715Full record

SynthesisJournal of translational medicine2025

Biomarkers for sarcopenia, muscle mass, muscle strength, and physical performance: an umbrella review.

Gaoming Liu, Shide Jiang, Wenqing Xie, Xu Liu, Guang Yang, Wenhao Lu, Hengzhen Li, Zhi Liu, Wenfeng Xiao, Yusheng Li

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Journal of translational medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
19citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

19 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Organometric and Biochemical Regularities of Transition to Aging.Doklady biological sciences : proceedings of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Biological sciences sections · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Protective Effects ofPharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026
    Article
  5. Novel biomarkers for sarcopenia: a narrative review.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2026
    Review
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  7. Article
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  12. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Gaoming LiuDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.ORCID 0000-0003-3624-9193
Shide JiangDepartment of Orthopedics, The Central Hospital of Yongzhou, Yongzhou, 425000, China.
Wenqing XieDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.
Xu LiuDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.
Guang YangDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.
Wenhao LuDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.
Hengzhen LiDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.
Zhi LiuDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China.
Wenfeng XiaoDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China. xiaowenfeng@csu.edu.cn.
Yusheng LiDepartment of Orthopedics, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410011, China. liyusheng@csu.edu.cn.

Funding

Hunan Provincial Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars 2024JJ2089Independent Exploration and Innovation Project for Postgraduate Students of Central South University 2024ZZTS0276National Key R&D Program of China 2023YFB4606705, 2023YFC3603400National Natural Science Foundation of China 82272611, 82072506, 92268115Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province 2023JJ30949Science and Technology Innovation Program of Hunan Province 2023SK2024
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundBiomarkers in sarcopenia have garnered increasing interest. This study aims to systematically identify biomarkers with potential diagnostic significance for sarcopenia, as well as those exhibiting correlations with sarcopenia, particularly biomarkers reporting quantitative pooled data.

methodsThis umbrella review adhered to the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Data sources including PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched from the inception of data to April 7, 2025. The AMSTAR 2 tool and QUADAS-2 tool was utilized to assess the methodological quality of including studies, while the GRADE approach was used to evaluate the quality of evidence in these studies.

resultsA total of 22 studies were included. The identified biomarkers encompass inflammatory, metabolic, hormonal, amino acid-related, genetic, and other categories. The evidence quality for most biomarkers was rated as very low. The creatinine to cystatin C (Cr/CysC) ratio emerged as the most frequently utilized diagnostic biomarker, demonstrating moderate diagnostic accuracy. However, its diagnostic performance exhibited variability across different diagnostic criteria. Biomarkers associated with sarcopenia predominantly demonstrated weak or negligible inverse correlations. Inflammatory biomarkers underwent the most comprehensive investigation. Patients with sarcopenia exhibited elevated interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) levels compared to controls, with these markers showing post-intervention improvement. Some metabolic and amino acid biomarkers were found to be lower in patients with sarcopenia than in the control group.

conclusionThe Cr/CysC ratio demonstrates moderate diagnostic accuracy and represents the most frequently utilized diagnostic biomarker for sarcopenia. Inflammatory biomarkers constitute the predominant biomarkers and exhibit general elevation in sarcopenia patients. Following sarcopenia interventions, alterations in biomarker expression levels are observed, suggesting novel therapeutic applications for these biomarkers.

Indexed as

BiomarkersMuscle, SkeletalMuscle StrengthPhysical Functional PerformanceSarcopeniaHumansOrgan SizeBiomarkersBiomarkersInflammationMeta-analysisMuscle massMuscle strengthSarcopeniaSystematic reviewUmbrella review

Identifiers

PMID40506715
PMCPMC12160432

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.